Several years ago, the clothes dryer in Nichols Fox's house stopped working.  It was old and worn out, and Nicols came to the conclusion that it wasn't worth repairing or replacing.  Instead, she began to hang her laundry on a clothesline, believing that this would save her some money and give her some exercise.

No big deal, right?

Wrong.  Nichols' decision to string up a clothesline unleashed a political firestorm.

A friend of hers found the practice revolting.  "You hang out your clothes?" she asked in horror.  The Washington Post interviewed Nichols, and she had to defend herself against charges of being a destroyer of machinery.  A critic in New Zealand wrote a one-act play making fun of her clothesline.  And an American freelance writer accused her of being insensitive to the plight of women - women around the world who were forced to hang their wash on the line.

But hold on, time out, just one second.  "When precisely" asked Nichols Fox, "did the clothesline become the symbol of oppressed womanhood?"

What Nichols discovered is that science and technology have become the dominant faith in our society.  She's exactly right.  Yesterday morning, the newspaper had a picture of men rushing into the Best Buy electronics store in Arlington, after having lined up outside at 11 p.m. on Thanksgiving Night.  We assume without question that it is always good to buy a new machine, and that the latest model is clearly worth whatever time and money it costs to buy it.  

But guess what?  Maybe the most cutting-edge technology is not going to make us healthier and happier.  Perhaps Nichols Fox has found that she is better off without a clothes dryer, since hanging her laundry gives her a chance to breathe fresh air, listen to the birds, check on her plants, and enjoy the warmth of the sun.

Nichols Fox has asked the clothesline question, and in the process she has been attacked by the worshipers of science and technology.  But she is not giving up - she is going to continue to put her clothes on the line, because she believes that human progress hasn't always kept its promise to make us happier and healthier.  (Nichols Fox, "The Clothesline Question," Utne, November-December 2003, 47-49).

The clothesline question.  It's the question of what really matters, and it's an important one to ask, especially as we look toward Christmas and begin to search for the latest electronic devices for family members and friends.  Before we whip out the credit card and purchase another MP3 player or video game system or kitchen appliance, we really ought to ask ourselves: Is it necessary?  Is it good?  Is it going to promote real health and happiness?  If the answer is no, then perhaps we ought to keep looking.

The clothesline question begins with technology, but it doesn't end there.  We ask a clothesline question every time we wonder whether it makes sense to follow the crowd, whether we really have to keep up with the neighbors, whether we ought to conform to conventional wisdom, whether we have to give in to peer pressure, whether we need to support the status quo.  While we don't all have to abandon our clothes dryers and string up lines between apple trees, every one of us is challenged to discover for ourselves what makes for a good life.

Back in the first century, both John the Baptist and Jesus raised a number of clothesline questions.  They weren't afraid to buck the trend, go against the grain, and rub people the wrong way.  And you know what happened: They unleashed a political firestorm.

It all starts when John appears in the wilderness, proclaiming, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Matthew 3:1-2).  He invites people to turn their lives around, and they respond in great numbers, flowing down to the river to confess their sins and be baptized.

Not everyone appreciates his approach, however.  When the Pharisees and the Sadducees come down to the river for baptism, John says to them, "You brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Bear fruit worthy of repentance!" (vv. 7-8).

I have to give John high marks for honesty, no question about it.  But as for diplomacy … I'd say he's got a few rough edges.

Eventually John rubs Herod the wrong way, and he gets himself arrested.  While he is locked up, John sends a message to Jesus, asking, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" (11:2-3).  John is genuinely curious about what Jesus has been up to, since John has been expecting the Messiah to scorch the earth with fiery judgment, gathering the good people to himself and burning the bad "with unquenchable fire" (3:12).

Instead, Jesus has focused his efforts on performing works of compassion, and he answers John by saying, "the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.  And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me" (11:5-6).

Neither John nor Jesus feels any compulsion to follow the crowd, keep up with the neighbors, conform to conventional wisdom, or give in to peer pressure.  If they did, they would have dressed in soft robes and hung around in royal palaces.  But instead, John puts on an outfit of camel's hair and prepares the way for Jesus by screeching a message of repentance.  Jesus leaves his home and family and goes off on a mission of cleansing lepers, bringing good news to the poor, and proclaiming the kingdom of God.  They both follow what God commands of them, rather than what society expects of them.  

They ask a number of clothesline questions, and pay a steep price for bucking the status quo.  As it turns out, there are plenty of people who take offense at what they are doing.  John has his head handed to him - or, to be biblically accurate, he has his head handed to Herodias, the unlawful wife of Herod (14:1-12).  Jesus ends up nailed to a cross, unjustly convicted of blasphemy and sedition.  As much as Nichols Fox may have felt persecuted for her laundry techniques, she is fortunately not forced to lose her life for putting her clothes on the line.

So, you might wonder, is it worth it?  Does it make sense to raise clothesline questions if the world is going to respond by putting our heads on a platter or our bodies on a cross?

Yes.  Absolutely.  The whole point of this approach is to maximize our health and happiness, both as individuals and as a society.  Although the world does not always appreciate them, clothesline questions help to focus us on what makes for a truly good life.  Did Southerners appreciate Abolitionist preachers in the early 19th century?  Not at all.  But if these preachers had not raised questions about slavery, we might still be living with that institution.  Did white Christians enjoy listening to black activist pastors in the 1960s?  Many did not.  But if they had not considered the questions raised by these pastors, there would have been far less support for the civil rights movement.  And if Protestant churches had refused to listen to questions about the role of women in the church, there would be no female pastors in our congregations -- some of the best preachers in the pulpit today.  

These clothesline questions can generate controversy, no doubt about it.  They can cause shake-ups in the status quo.  But when they are raised and considered and discussed, they lead us toward a much better life.  It's the raising of these questions that helps the blind to see, the lame to walk, the deaf to hear, and the poor to receive good news.

Today, some questions for us might include:

Do we really need all of the credit cards that fill our wallets and wipe out our bank accounts?  Ralph Weitz, the stewardship pastor of Immanuel Bible Church in Springfield, is deeply concerned about the damage that credit card debt does to us, so he conducts seminars and workshops to teach people how to avoid this burden.  As part of these events, he invites people to take out their credit cards and cut them to pieces.

Or how about this question: Do we really need to be so inward-focused as a congregation, or can we do better at looking outward?  Outward-looking congregations establish church projects in troubled areas and tackle issues such as family disintegration, alcoholism, and domestic violence -- areas of ministry that have an enormous public benefit.  I don't think that such a focus is going to hurt us as a congregation: People are going to be attracted to churches that put faith into action and set out to make a difference in the world.  We always grow inwardly as we look outwardly.  

And how about this one: Do we really need to scurry around so much during this holiday season, or can we find some happiness by staying home with family and friends?  Do we truly need to spend so much money on presents for each other at Christmas, or can we skip the gifts and simple be present to each other during this holy time of year?

We don't have to abandon our clothes dryers as we pursue the good life.  But we'll all be better off if we take the time to focus on what God asks of us, instead of what society expects of us.  

It all begins with asking the question of what really matters.  The clothesline question.  Amen.