“Once upon a time, there was a man who strayed from his own country into the world known as the Land of Fools. He soon saw a number of people fleeing in terror from a field where they had been trying to reap wheat. ‘There is a monster in that field,’ they told him. He looked, and saw that it was a watermelon.

He offered to kill the ‘monster’ for them. When he had cut the melon from its stalk, he took a slice and began to eat it. The people became even more terrified of him than they had been of the melon. They drove him away with pitchforks, crying, ‘He will kill us next, unless we get rid of him.’

It so happened that at another time another man also strayed into the Land of Fools, and the same thing started to happen to him. But, instead of offering to help them with the ‘monster,’ he agreed with them that it must be dangerous, and by tiptoeing away from it with them he gained their confidence. He spent a long time with them in their houses until he could teach them, little by little, the basic facts which would enable them not only to lose their fear of the melons, but even to cultivate them themselves.”

Fear is something that motivates us. It can motivate us in healthy ways that keep us safe from harm, and it can motivate us in unhealthy ways that separate us from others, from ourselves, and from God. In our passage from Ephesians 2, the Apostle Paul talks about this unhealthy fear that separates. The separation between Jews and everyone else had gotten so bad that Paul uses six different words or phrases to describe those divisions. As we think about our own ways of putting up barriers between ourselves and others, I want to explore those six words and phrases in more depth and see if they shed light on our own fears and anxieties.

The first term that Paul uses is the term ‘Gentiles.’ He says, “remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth.” The Greek word here is ethnos, from which we get our words ethnic or ethnicity. It means “those of a different race or different customs.” We don’t have to look far to see the fear and the divide racial and ethnic differences have, and continue to, cause. When we are in the presence of people who are racially and ethnically different from us, it’s not inherently wrong to feel anxious or even fearful. But it is what we do with that fear that shapes the kind of people we are. Quite often what we do is put up a wall between us and the “Gentiles” in our lives. We impose restrictions to limit their access to our lives. The Jews were no different, which leads us to the second divisive word or phrase that Paul uses.

Paul calls them the “uncircumcision” or the “uncircumcised.” This, of course, refers to the Jewish requirement that all males be circumcised as part of the covenant with God that began with Abraham. While it began as a sign of the covenant between God and God’s people, it became a barrier for anyone not born a Jew to be included in the covenant. Circumcision became a salvation issue. We read in Acts chapter 15 where some people from Judea were teaching the early Christians in Jerusalem and saying, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” The apostles all gather to discuss this issue with Paul and Barnabas. There is much debate, but then Peter stands up and says, “Why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.” Peter saw how damaging this dividing wall of religious dogma was, so he spoke up and things changed.

The third divisive word Paul uses is translated as “being aliens” in the NRSV. In the Greek, this is a verb directly translated as “far from belonging.” I think we all know what it’s like to not belong somewhere. Paul says, “Remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from [not belonging to] the commonwealth of Israel.” They didn’t know Christ yet, and more than that, they were not even part of Israel. They were outsiders. They didn’t belong.

In that same sentence, Paul calls them strangers. The Greek word is xenos, from which we get the word xenophobia, which is a fear of strangers. This word xenos is interesting though, because it means stranger or foreigner, but it also means guest. As I studied this word, I got the impression that a xenos is someone who was just temporarily visiting the land. They were not citizens nor had they moved there. They were just visitors, tourists in a way. They didn’t belong to the land, and were not really expected or invited to become invested in the land. They would always be just visitors passing through.

The fifth divisive word that Paul uses comes in the very next verse. He talks about those who once were far off. The Greek is tois makran, which means “those are a distance or those far away.” The Gentiles had not been even close to the kingdom of God. The implication then is that they would have to do a whole lot to draw close to God. They were nowhere near God. In fact, many Jews believed the Gentiles to be heathens who would need to be completely changed and purified in order to be brought near to God. Paul uses that word again in verse 17.

Then in verse 19, we see Paul once again refer to them as xenos and then he adds paroikos. He writes, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens.” Unlike xenos, a paroikos is someone who has moved to the land. They aren’t just visiting, they’ve taken up residence there. They live there now. But they still don’t belong. They are not citizens. They are outsiders.

All six of these terms are meant to exclude. They are terms that I’m sure Paul’s audience has heard used in reference to them. They are outcasts, aliens, and foreigners. They don’t belong. They are far away from God. They are heathens. They are different and strange. But Paul says to them, ‘That WAS your identity. You WERE outcasts and aliens and foreigners. But no longer. NOW, you are citizens of God’s kingdom and members of God’s household. NOW, you belong. Once you were far away from God, but NOW you have been brought near by the blood of Jesus.’

As I read this passage from Ephesians over and over this week, I couldn’t help but think about our nation and all the division that we see, division that seems to be getting worse rather than better. I see the fear: fear of the unknown, fear of those different from us, fear of things we simply don’t understand, fear of change. And that fear is natural, but it is how we react to the fear that shows who we are. According to Paul, God is reconciling Jew and Gentile, residents and foreigners, those who are far off and those who are near. God is breaking down the dividing wall between us. God is making us into one. We are all citizens of God’s kingdom and members of God’s household.

Yet, in our humanity, we don’t see it that way, and so we judge and exclude and make rules and laws to push people away who aren’t like us or who we feel don’t belong. The irony of the whole situation is that we once were those outcasts and aliens and foreigners. Our history is that of Abraham who was called to leave his home to go to a foreign land. Our history is that of Hebrews living as slaves in Egypt. Our history (at least for any of us who aren’t ethnically Jewish) is that of the Gentiles, who Pauls says were once far away from God. Our history is that of Christian martyrs who were persecuted for not following the rules of the land in which they lived. Our history is that of refugees fleeing religious persecution to a new land where they could make new laws that support religious freedom. We have a history of being the outcasts, the aliens, the foreigners. And we came through that all with the help of saints and friends and those who chose love over division.

Shouldn’t we then offer the same love and compassion to others? Shouldn’t we be welcoming of the outcasts and the aliens and the foreigners? Shouldn’t the church of all places be a place of love and welcome and acceptance for ALL people?

Last night, April and I went with Daniel to see “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” put on by Theatre West. If you haven’t seen it yet, you should. The whole theme of the story is about judging others who are different from us and the pain that causes. One of the most moving and poignant parts comes when Esmerelda, a young gypsy, has entered the Notre Dame Cathedral and has an interaction with the Archdeacon who is very prejudiced against gypsies. When he leaves, she sings a prayer to God. The words of that prayer say:

I don’t know if you can hear me

Or if you’re even there

I don’t know if you would listen

To a gypsy’s prayer

Yes, I know I’m just an outcast

I shouldn’t speak to you

But still I see your face and wonder

Were you once an outcast too?

God help the outcasts

Hungry from birth

Show them the mercy

They don’t find on Earth

God help my people

They look to you still

God help the outcasts

Or nobody will

Who are the outcasts in our world? In our nation? In our community? How can we be God’s hands and feet to help the outcasts and the aliens and the foreigners? Let us remember our own heritage of being excluded and unwelcome. And let us build a better world where we are all citizens of God’s kingdom and members of God’s household, where we share in the love and peace and joy of fellowship despite our differences. Amen!