I suppose that it is possible, though not likely, that some of you in this church are as impatient as I am.
-I don’t like to wait.
-I am unhappy in lines of traffic.
-I will go without a breakfast biscuit before I will stand in line behind a busload of high school kids who always seem to have just pulled into the McDonald’s parking lot moments before me.
-And you should see the way I purse my lips when everyone else’s coffee arrives at the table except mine.
My affliction is even of the sort that I am impatient with patient people.
Last Saturday, the curate rode with me to the deacons’ ordination. He left in my car, a piece of painted wood, left over from the reredos construction, a bottle of aspirin, and a lemonade can, which spilled microscopic (albeit significant) drops of lemonade on my upholstery. His intention was to remove these things”¦ eventually. My reaction was to make comment”¦ immediately.
Not many days ago, I walked into my parents’ house and saw my father comfortably stretched out on the sofa. His own mantra is that he can do nothing better than anyone, so I knew for a fact that the only muscle in his body that had moved in an hour was the finger on the remote control…. I therefore said to him cheerfully, I see the medication for your restless leg syndrome is working! He did not think that was nearly as funny as I did.
So yes, I am indeed impatient. And being married for 25 years to a dear soul who is quintessentially “Type B” has done nothing to make my spirit more- shall we say- “mellow”.
So imagine my discomfort when I saw the recent title of an article in a theological journal which stated, IMPATIENCE IS SPIRITUAL ARROGANCE.
–The Rev. Dow Sanderson of Holy Communion, Charleston, S.C. in a recent sermon
This post takes [i] way [/i] too long to read.
LOL, #1! It took me a couple seconds to hear your irony – great response.
What can “Impatience is spiritual arrogance” mean? Consider his examples. What is there spiritual about any of them. Why, nothing at all, obviously.
This is bumper sticker mentality at work. The irony is that this silly quip is impatient. This is the sort of dire facetiousness one sees posted on those signs outside big churches aimed at attention spans of two seconds. This is another one of those posts that deserve the round file. LM
I don’t know… skipping the bisquit because of the line at McDonald’s isn’t really too spiritual, though one’s attitude about doing so might be. I’d definitely say an even temper in traffic and tolerance of one’s co-workers/subordinates/family are the fundamental stuff of “spirituality”, on the other hand. Like the old song: pulling the weeds, Lord, pulling the weeds. Living for your glory, pulling the weeds.
I disagree with # 3 above, not least because Kyrie eleison I recognised too much of myself in this outline of the impatient person. And yes, it is a spiritual issue. Self-control is one of the fruits of the spirit: when impatience leads us to intemperateness, then we need to repent and ask for the necessary grace. There is also a social aspect. Many of us are spending way too much time in our cars batting from one commitment to the next. A driver who behaves boorishly can upset a whole load of people with ricochetting effects of ill will.
But cannot “patience” lead to inaction? Jesus is not patient. Rather the Gospels show an almost frantic and driven Jesus urging people to accept the Kingdom of God before it is to late. Jesus preaches and teaches with urgency. Judgment is at hand and He does not want anyone to be on the wrong side of that judgment. This is true love, not the modern notion of love that says do what you want.
To be sue, #6, patience is to often the mask of cowardice. We have been “patient” with TEC. What have been the results? WE have seen ourselves as fearful of action, fearful of reaching a decision. Jesus would have looked at TEC and swept them from the temple, would He not? Larry
I have a coffee mug which says, “Lord, grant me patience, but I need it right now!” I sometimes remind myself of that quote in various situations. One thing I have found is that not everybody else does, and sometimes you can get run over by those who don’t. Sometimes the right style of reaction is obvious immediately, but often not until well after the fact. Ah, life.
we live in a convenience laden world where we just don’t expect to wait for anything, ANYTHING. ATMs, pay for gas at the pump, cell phones (gotta talk to that person NOW). these conveniences really are a mixed blessing…..
He just insists on his own way, immediately; and is proud of it. At least he has not committed sloth.
I wanted to respond to this post earlier, but I felt it prudent to wait. As an person who is inclined to impatience, I agree that impatience is a sign of spiritual arrogance. I want what I want when I want it and I don’t want to wait for God or anyone else.
Patience and sloth are two different things. Sloth is also a form of spiritual arrogance in tell God that now is not the time.
So, how do we know if we are practicing patience or practicing sloth? I’m not sure if we will ever [b]know[/b]. I believe that we will have the best chance of understanding if we pray together and listen to the whole church, not just those that agree with us.
YBIC,
Phil Snyder
We take preaching very seriously at Church of the Holy Communion, but we also try to have a sense of humor, and the clergy often engage in a little self-deprecating silliness as we open our sermons. I can only guess that Kendall included this little bit of my sermon because he found it funny, which was the hope. The rest of the sermon is about the impatience of the Hebrew people as they waited on Moses, and how impatience leads us to idolotry… This really was never intended for theological critique as a “stand alone” piece! Have mercy… and patience!
My dear friend, Dow, may be impatient but his other saintly qualities, including his wit, are right on the mark.
One wonders if Canon Harmon was not having a bit of fun with his confrere? 🙂
Too bad we don’t have the rest of the sermon; impatience is indeed usually rooted in self-importance, one form of it being not wanting to wait on the Lord. Of course waiting on the Lord would require us acknowledging that we are not the center of the universe and all sorts of such unpleasantness…
And to add to #9, that is something I also decry. Instant microwave meals and the explosion of easy consumer credit (buy now, pay later) are my two favorite examples. We used to save until we could afford things, now we buy, enjoy, consume and sometimes break things before we’ve even made payments on them ! And how many people actually cook anymore ? It’s so much easier to go to a restaurant (preferably fast-food, can’t even wait for someone else to cook !) or zap some frozen item (can’t always recognize food in there)… We can do something about it, though, by being counter-cultural in our own families.
Hey, some fast-food is pretty good. And much of the microwave food isn’t bad, either, much of it better than I can make myself. (Last Thursday, I had the Zataran’s Red beans and rice with sausage. All it needed was a bit of tobasco, and yum!. And only five minutes from freezer to plate.)
Nowadays it’s also CHEAPER (a prime consideration in my case) to buy pre-prepared microwave meals for lunch at work then making a lunch from scratch.
Oh, by the way, we still go on the ‘don’t buy unless you have the cash’ purchase plan. Nothing on credit.