So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbours, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labour and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

I like the image here of "putting away falsehood."  It makes me think of "falsehood" as a garment to be stripped off and put back in the closet.  Put it away.  Enough.  Authenticity is a tough one.  I believe that as Christians we are called to be truthful and authentic, but there is certainly a sort of pseudo-theological admonishment "to be yourself"  that can just code for libertarianism and the false assurance that you are just fine the way you are, there is also that Catcher and the Rye "be yourself" that is always pointing a finger at all the fakes out there and never really stopping to recognize the falsehoods that we all require to cover our vulnerability... this can be cruel.

Yet, we are suppose to speak truth to our neighbors-- the passage tell us to speak the truth because "we are members of one another."  This rationale is of course deeply relational.  It employs language used  elsewhere to describe marriage, sex, the church, and our bond with Christ.

  I am glad, however, that something deeper than mere  "truth" is keeping us bound to our neighbors, that our membership with others is dependent on something deeper than our truth-telling or our ability to express ourselves authentically.  I am glad the passage works the other way.  That our membership with our neighbors (something prior to any of our speech acts true of not, or action authentic or not) binds us first and primarily.

The next part of this passage discomforts me a bit.  I am uncomfortable with the infinitive--"be angry."   It is easy for me to rush on to the next parts "don't sin in anger,"  "do not be perpetually angry,"  but for now I will pause and think about the fact that anger itself is allowed just not "making room for the devil."  At the risk of falling into the morose of psycho-babble and over-confession, I have an easier time not being angry and a much more difficult time not allowing room for the devil in the spaces that hurt invariable carves out within my soul.  I might not be quick to rush towards anger or even that apt to hold a long term grudge, but I certainly allow injuries to hollow out a portion of my soul.  I don't know if the remedy for this is to allow myself to "be angry" or if there is another solution.  

Immediately the text directs those who steal to stop stealing and to take up honest work. Yet, what is particularly appealing here is the rationale for earning this wage: "so as to have something to share with the needy."  Here is a definition of being financially blessed. As I mentioned last time:  money is something that I am really truly struggling with for the first time.  This is a good reminder.  I am successful enough to share and my sharing is the only legitimate measure of my success.


The rest of the passage is just something that I should read and re-read and let soak deep into my soul.

Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.