Lent and a Double Rainbow
Many of you have probably seen this video of Guy Paul “Yosemite Bear” Vasquez and his Double Rainbow (it’s at 32+million views right now). It’s worth revisiting if you haven’t. It’s hilarious, but it’s also deeply profound and beautiful. Vasquez is moved and perplexed by the rainbows – he yells out, “What does this mean?”
Lent begins tomorrow. Many are thinking of the commitments and promises made for the 40(+)-day journey. This Sunday’s first reading (Genesis 9:8-17) asks us to think of something else though – it asks us to think on God’s commitment and promise to us!
Almost everyone knows the story of Noah and the flood (work with me in my generalizing). God observes creation and the wickedness that has infected it from the murder of Abel up to the time of Noah, and God was sorry for making it. “I will blot out from the earth the human beings I have created – people altogether with animals and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them (Gen 6:7)” But Noah – Noah is a righteous man – God will save him. So, Noah and family, and a zoo of animals climb aboard the ark Noah built, God shuts the door, and it’s bon voyage!
The whole earth is flooded, and after 40 days/nights, the waters begin to subside. A bird is sent out to search for habitable land but returns unsuccessful. Another is sent, and it returns with an olive branch. Finally, a third is sent, and it does not return (I wouldn’t either, that ark had to STINK!!!). It is safe now. So, Noah and family and all the animals exit the ark and, of course, Noah, the righteous man that he is, makes a sacrifice to God. God smells the burning flesh and fat and is pleased. Then the work of being fruitful and multiplying begins again – and they all live happily ever after, right?
No. You see, Noah was a man of the soil – and he is the first to plant a vineyard. One day, he ties one on, and he passes out, naked in his tent. His son, Ham, sees what has become of his father, and, snickering, he tells his brothers to see what happened. Shem and Japheth, though, do not think it’s funny – they cover their father up. And when Noah wakes up the next morning, he is fuming (and maybe hungover)! He curses Ham and blesses the other two. So much for happily ever after – we didn’t even make it from chapter 8 to chapter 10 without screwing things up. So, what does this mean? Well, it means everything!
Let’s go back to the sacrifice, right after Noah gets off the boat. God smells the pleasing odor, and says, “I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living creature, as I have done. As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease (Gen. 8:21-22).”
You see, God has come to grips with his creation – he knows it isn’t perfect, and God chooses to love it anyway! And, “when I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and every living creature of all flesh (Gen. 9:16).” It isn’t because Noah and his family will get everything right from here on out – it’s because God made a promise that is completely unconditional – a promise grounded in pure love and grace!
Vasquez, when he sees the double rainbow, yells, “what does this mean?” And for us, the rainbow means everything! It means that God’s love is for us. It’s un-earnable and unconditional – a free gift that we see most clearly in Jesus journey to the cross.
As we begin this Lenten journey, let us remember together, this is not about the promises and commitments we make to God – it is about the promise that God has made to us! Let’s journey together through Lent, in sacrificial prayer, fasting, and alms-giving, not because it is required of us or because God needs it, but let’s do these things because they remind us, like the rainbow, of all that God has already done and continues to do for us.