Luke 12:42-48

We are inflicted daily by our news media that these are challenging and daunting days of gloom and doom. Unless there is a dramatic and systemic turnaround in the leading US economy we are unable to stop the self-destruct button that is depressed by our current economic and financial crisis. The news that comes out of Washington spells compromise with the present political powers and economic czars. Radical change is required. It is not forthcoming and disaster looms.

Oscar Night out of Hollywood sent stirring messages of hope and possibilities. The award winning films of Milk and Slumdog Millionaire filled the airwaves and cyberspace. It almost seems that God is not mocked. The darker the night the brighter the candles shine. We will not be crushed. We will suffer no less. But we will survive. Out of the spiritual abuse and marginalization, the vision of Harvey Milk was revived. Out of the utter misery of the slums of Mumbai the laughter of the children was heard around the word with their songs of victory – Jai Ho. There is a hymn with the same title Jaya Ho that found its way years ago into the present United Methodist Church hymnal. Jai Ho is sounded and victory is assured.

Harvey Milk is the gay icon and martyr in our time. In his what is now known as his famous "Hope Speech" in observing the anniversary Stonewall he declared:

"I ask my gay sisters and brothers to make the commitment to fight. For themselves, for their freedom, for their country ... We will not win our rights by staying quietly in our closets ... We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions. We are coming out to tell the truths about gays, for I am tired of the conspiracy of silence, so I'm going to talk about it. And I want you to talk about it. You must come out. Come out to your parents, your relatives."

He challenged his sisters and brothers: Come out to your immediate family, relatives, friends, neighbours, and shopkeepers. Then once they realise we are really their children, and that we are everywhere, every myth, every lie, every innuendo will be destroyed. And you will feel so much better.

Realising the dangers of assassination which did occur he recorded this hope" "If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door." That was said in 1978 and more closet doors were destroyed but this is 2009 and his hope has yet to become reality.

Dustin Lance Webb the winning screenwriter who came out to the world on Oscar Night recalled the past and said: When I was 13 years old, my beautiful mother and my father moved me from a conservative Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas to California, and I heard the story of Harvey Milk. And it gave me hope. It gave me the hope to live my life. It gave me the hope one day I could live my life openly as who I am and then maybe even I could even fall in love and one day get married. He followed with this impassioned plea: "If Harvey had not been taken from us 30 years ago, I think he would want me to say to all the gay and lesbian kids out there tonight who have been told they are less than by the churches, by the government, by their families, that you are beautiful, wonderful creatures of value, and that no matter what anyone tells you, God does love you and that very soon, I promise you, you will have equal rights, federally, across this great nation of ours,"

Yes, and across the world.

Sean Penn who received the best actor Academy Award greeted the audience as "homo loving sons of guns" He recounted: "for those who saw the signs of hatred as our cars drove in tonight, I think that it is a good time for those who voted for the ban against gay marriage to sit and reflect and anticipate their great shame and the shame in their grandchildren's eyes if they continue that way of support. We've got to have equal rights for everyone.

It was acknowledged that in the course of human history people have to fight and seize power for we know that the powerful will not surrender power or offer it on a silver platter. We have to unmask and confront the domination systems. It is a possibility and we must be willing to make the sacrifice to achieve it.

Turning to the other movie "Slumdog Millionaire," it was truly from rags-to-riches to see the same children appear on Oscar Night with suits and tuxedos and dresses. Some years ago in the seventies, I was taken by Community Organizers to visit the slums of Bombay and Calcutta. One cannot imagine the kind of human misery that exists even till today. Yes, situations can change. Change is possible. It takes the willingness of people to make them happen. Now the slum dwellers have returned to their hovels and government housing is made available for the few but what about the thousands that continue to eke their human existence with lack of food, shelter, education and work.

In the movie plot of Slumdog Millionair no one believed Jamal could have answered all the questions in the popular TV game-show: "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." He was arrested, questioned and tortured on the day before the final question to determine whether he had cheated or just lucky. None expected a young illiterate slum dweller to be so smart to answer all the questions correctly. With childlike innocence Jamal told his whole story, explaining how his life experiences coincidentally enabled him to know the answer to each question. The police inspector calls his explanation "bizarrely plausible" and allows him to return to the show for the final question.

He gave the correct answers because of things that happened in his life. This is conveyed in a series of flashbacks documenting the particulars of his childhood.

This leads me to the sermon that I was asked some time ago to preach on the theme "For the first time, I…" The message of hope and possibilities of Oscar Night rings in my ears. How can I continue this message of hope and responsibility from my perspective.

I have been asked many questions about my theological orientation. Why do I believe the way I do which seems to be contrary to the teaching of the Methodist Church or to your former church. So I am regarded as a theological rebel by some or as has Susan said a heretic by a few. I am travelling on the theological road less traveled. This is the first time that I am sharing in a close and personal way my journey to religious faith.

Following the example of the slum dweller Jamal of Mumbai I will share a series of flashbacks and show how my life experiences enabled me to secure the answers to the questions posed to me.

In my childhood, I can remember that my mother like most Chinese mothers follow the traditional Chinese religion which is a combination of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. This involves going to temples making offerings on festival days to the different idols including the Buddhist Kuan Yin or Goddess of Mercy and to follow the Confucius way of life. At times I joined in reciting the Buddhist mantra Amitofu with prayer beads before the image of Buddha in the home altar. So I perform the ritualistic act and experienced the sense of mystery in religion but not an understanding of God.

When I was a teenager I attending some Sunday School lessons in ACS Kampar and a Christian friend took me to attend occasional worship services in the Gospel Hall or Brethren church with a very small congregation. There was no Christian message that I can recall. The image of Christianity that I gained then is that of the picture card of Christ with the lost sheep on his shoulder.

Then at the age of fifteen I encountered the traumatic event when a group of Japanese military police attacked me. They came one evening and just yanked me out of my seat in a darkened movie theatre and took me to a building next to it and made judo throws from one end of the hall to the other. Each time I had to stand up and get thrown across the cement flow and I lost count of the number of times. I sensed that it was going to be the end of my earthly existence and was resigned to face death. When I could not stand up my father who was informed of what was happening rushed into the hall and came to my side. Attention was drawn to him. He was slapped and beaten. Subsequently, the torture stopped and he was ordered to piggy-back me to the Police Station. We were placed in the lockup of a crowded cell. A few hours later in the night, my father and I were released. No explanations were given. No apologies made. I interpreted it as a stroke of bad luck. I was plucked from the very doors of death.

It was almost a year later when the Japanese Occupation ended in 1945 that I was able to get an X-ray of the extent of my injury. After two surgical operations I was placed in a firm plaster cast which extended from my foot to my chest. I stayed immobilized in a hospital bed for three long months before the cast was removed. I had to learn to walk all over again and joined the ranks of the handicapped.

Religious faith did not play a part in my life and I just had to endure the hardships but I developed a high tolerance of pain and suffering.

But a group of Methodist youth in Wesley Church Ipoh heard of my plight and one member in particular, Festus Havelock visited me regularly almost every day during the whole period of my stay in hospital. He was not academically inclined and had to enroll in the Trade School comparable to Institute of Technical education to learn to be a motor mechanic. The Trade School was near the hospital and he took the time either to or from the school to visit me and cheer me up. He had a loving spirit and compassionate heart and I was touched. He did not share with me his Christian teaching but more importantly he shared with me his Christian life of care and compassion. He did not preach the Gospel, he lived the Gospel. That created in me the importance of Christian faith for the first time really – act of Christian charity and love. It was the important beginning of my journey to Christian faith. There was no vision, no voices, no drama, no sense of being born again.

Festus because of the way he expressed his concern was the one that brought me to Christ. He joined the Police Force and rose in rank of Assistant Inspector of Police in the area of tele-communications. He died about three years ago I went to pay my respects to him and laid him to eternal rest in the Christian cemetery in Kuching, Sarawak.

My journey in faith continued in Wesley Church youth group and the missionary pastor impressed me with his teaching. Ralph Kesselring died in Ipoh and I helped to lay his casket in the Christian cemetery where he remained today. I remembered well his sermons from the minor prophets of Amos, Micah and Hosea. They were about justice – "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream (Amos)." "What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, love kindness and to walk humbly with your God (Micah)." And "For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings.(Hosea)". The message of the major prophet Isaiah made impression on me. "Seek the Lord while he may be found and call upon him while he is near… For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my way." Then this meaningful and relevant hymn haunted me "Softly and Tenderly Jesus is calling, Calling for you and for me." I responded and was welcomed into my spiritual home. I began my formal theological studies in college and seminary.

Boston University School of Theology was regarded by students and alumni as the School of the Prophets and historically until today it is in the forefront of social justice. It had pioneered in the ministry

to the poor in the city in Goodwill industries, outreach to industrial workers seeking their rights, providing clinical pastoral education for training counselors and engagement in the civil rights struggle with the distinguished leading light of none other than Martin Luther King Jr. Within its faculty were Hindus in Mission studies (Dr Asirvatham)and spirituality (Chakravarthy), Jew a survivor of the Holocaust. I was nurtured by these progressive scholars. Today, the Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, a Jew and survivor of the Holocaust is a faculty member,.

Now I am surrounded with kind sisters and brothers who keep one another honest with our Christian convictions. I count in my circle of friends those in other faith communities who while holding one’s own religious beliefs respect our differences and willing to be open and learn from the other in our common search for more clarity and greater truth.

With these experiences, I develop my peculiar understanding of the Christian faith. And particularly my faith in God and God’s relationship to me and the whole of creation.

Back to my early traumatic experience and how I was led to interpret it religiously today. My fundamental basis is that the living God is our Creator and all creation is groaning in travail and evolving. Our Creator has made all of us different and tasked us to fulfill the purpose of Creation. Another fundamental principle is that God has endowed us with freedom to decide and has to deal with the consequences therein.

Why was I picked out in the darkened theatre to be a victim of abuse The Japanese soldier did not know me and I was completely innocent. I was seated towards the end of the hall and may have looked back when the curtains parted and the soldier came in noted me. When I was tossed around by them it was a decision of theirs. Where was God at that time? God must have known that I was innocent and even the soldiers themselves knew later and released me from the police cell. But God knew but did not intervene directly. God intervened through my father when he rushed in and came by my side. My earthly father intervened as far I was concerned at a great risk to himself. But I know now that God works in mysterious ways and still will have to rely on the human decision and influenced my father to make the right decision. This is the way that God works most of the time. Not directly, no heavenly angels were dispatched. But always present luring and persuading human beings to do the right thing. When they fail to respond God suffers with us in our pain and agony. My God is a very patient and loving God, always present and always forgiving. That is why I live always in hope in spite of the darkest days in my life when I feel forsaken and rejected. Someday somewhere we will make the right choices which are pleasing to God and fulfilling God’s purpose in Creation.

When my life is almost snuffed out and I was snatched from the jaws of death, I know what life means and value it. God has created me and I came into being, knitted in my mother’s womb, nurtured through family, friends and community. Life is precious and as parents of gay children in demonstrating carry the message say – my children - gay children are children of sacred worth. You are valuable and you come from a divine source. You are loved by God no matter what others say. Let this message be internalized in you. Not that you are an abomination. You are of sacred worth. This is your first step towards liberation.

Among the lessons that I learned in seminary is that from my Dean Muelder who only died a few years ago. I last met up with him when I attended the 50th reunion of my graduation class five years ago. I took courses under him in Social Ethics. He authored the book with the title "The Responsible Society." This is an era of responsibility as our political leaders begin to echo it as well. We are able to realise hope in our midst when we exercise responsibility individually and collectively.

We must not allow ourselves just to pray and leave it to God. We just cannot unload our burdens at the feet of Christ and just leave them there. iHimHWe just cannot praise God with our lips and keep our hearts closed from loving our neighbors and hands clean from reaching out to those in need. We need to engage and get our hands dirty and our bodies dusty in meeting human need. We just cannot say that this problem is too big for us – Mighty God please take over.

God has gifted each of us differently. We have also developed our gifts less that what was expected. Nevertheless we are called to do whatever we can wherever we are and make a difference in our lives and the life around us.

I am reminded by the Gospel teaching – Everyone to whom much is given, of him will much be required. Luke 12.48. This is the Parable of the faithful steward of God’s possessions found also in Mathew Mark and Gospel of Thomas (Secret sayings of Jesus found in 1945.)

Everyone to whom much is given, of whom will much be required. We living here have been given much. Where is our caring and compassion? What have we done for peace with justice? Compare our lives with that in the Mumbai slums. Compare our homes with those one-room flats in our city where the exterior is being renovated and the interior is still bug infested. People exist in isolation and in misery rejected, ostracized and marginalized and even demonized. Compare our jobs with those who come here illegally and have to sell their bodies for money. They are being abused and condemned. In some cases they risk their lives.

The present crisis projected the gross inequalities in our society. We will remain in crisis unless the disparity between the rich and the poor is addressed, the chasm between the urban and the rural is bridged, the internal struggles between good and evil is overcome. We have to fight for equality of opportunities for all and build brick by brick not only an inclusive church or religious community but a more equitable society and world. The journey is lengthy and the road is rocky. But we have to move on.

God is involved and patiently waiting for our response - to be engaged, to be responsible and to realise hope. When we are faithful – victory is assured. And we can sing joyously Jaya Ho.