Reports, musings, sermons, happenings from a Presbyter (Priest) of The Episcopal Church who loves Jesus, the natural world, ice and snow, and is raising 3 children with his artist-wife, Erin McGee Ferrell. (This photo is of the Presidential range in NH taken from Vermont.)
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
The Cross of our Lord
Sermon for Proper 9 C RCL 7-4-2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: 2 Kings 5:1-14; Psalm 30; Galatians 6:7-16; Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
On this day, we celebrate the declaration of our nation’s independence from the rule of the King of Great Britain. This declaration took place 234 years ago, but it continues to have great significance for our lives and for many around the world.
We are proud – rightly so – of the bravery and resolve of our forebears in declaring this freedom from tyranny, and also in their willingness to risk everything to turn that declaration into a reality.
We are proud also of the role that our Episcopal Church played in the founding of this nation. The history of our Episcopal Church cannot be separated from the history of our nation’s founding. Just across the river in Philadelphia, the founding events of our nation and our church took place in the later years of the 18th century.
Of course, the first place we have to look for these connections is Christ Church in Old City, Philadelphia, about 5 miles as the crow flies from where we worship here today. How many of you have taken a tour of Christ Church?
Do you know that Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross and their families attended Christ Church? Did you know that George Washington and John Adams, when they lived in Philadelphia as the nation’s President, both attended Christ Church and worshipped by using the Book of Common Prayer?
Did you know that the one-time rector of Christ Church, William White, served as the Chaplain of both the Continental Congress and the new United States Senate?
Once the Continental Congress moved to New York in 1785, they elected a new Chaplain who was Samuel Provoost, the rector of Trinity Episcopal Church now on Wall Street. Provoost also presided over the prayers for the inauguration of General Washington as first President of the United States.
This inter-connected history continues even to this day. Most major national celebrations take place today within our National Cathedral in Washington. We built this in fulfillment of our vision to serve as the nation’s church. It has always been the vision of the Episcopal Church.
The Episcopal Church as we know it today was created at the first General Convention which met at Christ Church, Philadelphia in 1785. That Convention authorized a new Prayer Book, and the Preface of that book is included in our Prayer Book today. Let’s turn to it and read 2 key paragraphs together:
(Paragraphs 5&6 of the Preface to the first Book of Common Prayer in these United States ,Philadelphia, PA, October 1789)
“But when in the course of Divine Providence, these American States became independent with respect to civil government, their ecclesiastical independence was necessarily included; and the different religious denominations of Christians in these States were left at full and equal liberty to model and organize their respective Churches, and forms of worship, and discipline, in such manner as they might judge most convenient for their future prosperity; consistently with the constitution and laws of their country.
The attention of this Church was in the first place drawn to those alterations in the Liturgy which became necessary in the prayers for our Civil Rulers, in consequence of the Revolution. And the principal care herein was to make them conformable to what ought to be the proper end of all such prayers, namely, that "Rulers may have grace, wisdom, and understanding to execute justice, and to maintain truth;" and that the people "may lead quiet and peaceable lives, in all godliness and honesty."
All of these truths cause us to be very proud: proud of our American heritage, and proud of our church’s key role in the formation of this nation. We have a reason to be proud; we have a right to celebrate today.
But there is a difficulty for us as Christians in displaying this pride. What is it that St. Paul wrote to the Galatians, which we heard read in our midst here today?
“May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything!” (Galatians 6:14-15).
What does it mean to boast in nothing except our Lord Jesus Christ? What does that mean for nationalism, for patriotic pride?
Let me briefly suggest that patriotism and pride in our human institutions are natural and normal. These are not to be rejected, because love of country is an important part of that love of neighbor which God longs to see within us. But this love for country must always be held in tension with our deeper identity as Christians, with our first love for our Lord.
When we finally go the way of all flesh and are joined with our ancestors, it will not matter then whether our nationality is American or French or Kenyan or Brazilian. Those labels belong only to this fleeting world; they represent temporary arrangements among human beings.
But this Church of Jesus Christ to which we belong, within which we worship and learn and grow, this is a distinctive community of human beings which outlasts any empire or confederation or nation.
When we here stand up and declare our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed, we are in fact declaring our truest and deepest allegiance. This never-failing Church of Christ has no flag toward which we face; instead we face the cross. And there it is that we turn when we pledge our allegiance, this Cross of our Lord, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.
In our Gospel reading today, we are reminded of our mission as the Church: to go forth and cure the sick and bring the message of the kingdom of God to all people.
This kingdom includes people of every race, language, people and nation. It is God’s kingdom, and it is the only one which is worthy of our deepest loyalty.
So, go out and celebrate this Independence Day. Celebrate with pride in this wonderful nation. But remember to keep proper perspective. As you celebrate, remember your calling as a laborer in the kingdom of God, and “rejoice that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20).
Let us pray (Collect for Independence Day from the Book of Common Prayer):
Lord God Almighty, in whose Name the founders of this country won liberty for themselves and for us, and lit the torch of freedom for nations then unborn: Grant that we and all the people of this land may have grace to maintain our liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Texts: 2 Kings 5:1-14; Psalm 30; Galatians 6:7-16; Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
On this day, we celebrate the declaration of our nation’s independence from the rule of the King of Great Britain. This declaration took place 234 years ago, but it continues to have great significance for our lives and for many around the world.
We are proud – rightly so – of the bravery and resolve of our forebears in declaring this freedom from tyranny, and also in their willingness to risk everything to turn that declaration into a reality.
We are proud also of the role that our Episcopal Church played in the founding of this nation. The history of our Episcopal Church cannot be separated from the history of our nation’s founding. Just across the river in Philadelphia, the founding events of our nation and our church took place in the later years of the 18th century.
Of course, the first place we have to look for these connections is Christ Church in Old City, Philadelphia, about 5 miles as the crow flies from where we worship here today. How many of you have taken a tour of Christ Church?
Do you know that Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross and their families attended Christ Church? Did you know that George Washington and John Adams, when they lived in Philadelphia as the nation’s President, both attended Christ Church and worshipped by using the Book of Common Prayer?
Once the Continental Congress moved to New York in 1785, they elected a new Chaplain who was Samuel Provoost, the rector of Trinity Episcopal Church now on Wall Street. Provoost also presided over the prayers for the inauguration of General Washington as first President of the United States.
This inter-connected history continues even to this day. Most major national celebrations take place today within our National Cathedral in Washington. We built this in fulfillment of our vision to serve as the nation’s church. It has always been the vision of the Episcopal Church.
The Episcopal Church as we know it today was created at the first General Convention which met at Christ Church, Philadelphia in 1785. That Convention authorized a new Prayer Book, and the Preface of that book is included in our Prayer Book today. Let’s turn to it and read 2 key paragraphs together:
(Paragraphs 5&6 of the Preface to the first Book of Common Prayer in these United States ,Philadelphia, PA, October 1789)
“But when in the course of Divine Providence, these American States became independent with respect to civil government, their ecclesiastical independence was necessarily included; and the different religious denominations of Christians in these States were left at full and equal liberty to model and organize their respective Churches, and forms of worship, and discipline, in such manner as they might judge most convenient for their future prosperity; consistently with the constitution and laws of their country.
The attention of this Church was in the first place drawn to those alterations in the Liturgy which became necessary in the prayers for our Civil Rulers, in consequence of the Revolution. And the principal care herein was to make them conformable to what ought to be the proper end of all such prayers, namely, that "Rulers may have grace, wisdom, and understanding to execute justice, and to maintain truth;" and that the people "may lead quiet and peaceable lives, in all godliness and honesty."
All of these truths cause us to be very proud: proud of our American heritage, and proud of our church’s key role in the formation of this nation. We have a reason to be proud; we have a right to celebrate today.
But there is a difficulty for us as Christians in displaying this pride. What is it that St. Paul wrote to the Galatians, which we heard read in our midst here today?
“May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything!” (Galatians 6:14-15).
What does it mean to boast in nothing except our Lord Jesus Christ? What does that mean for nationalism, for patriotic pride?
Let me briefly suggest that patriotism and pride in our human institutions are natural and normal. These are not to be rejected, because love of country is an important part of that love of neighbor which God longs to see within us. But this love for country must always be held in tension with our deeper identity as Christians, with our first love for our Lord.
When we finally go the way of all flesh and are joined with our ancestors, it will not matter then whether our nationality is American or French or Kenyan or Brazilian. Those labels belong only to this fleeting world; they represent temporary arrangements among human beings.
But this Church of Jesus Christ to which we belong, within which we worship and learn and grow, this is a distinctive community of human beings which outlasts any empire or confederation or nation.
When we here stand up and declare our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed, we are in fact declaring our truest and deepest allegiance. This never-failing Church of Christ has no flag toward which we face; instead we face the cross. And there it is that we turn when we pledge our allegiance, this Cross of our Lord, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.
In our Gospel reading today, we are reminded of our mission as the Church: to go forth and cure the sick and bring the message of the kingdom of God to all people.
This kingdom includes people of every race, language, people and nation. It is God’s kingdom, and it is the only one which is worthy of our deepest loyalty.
So, go out and celebrate this Independence Day. Celebrate with pride in this wonderful nation. But remember to keep proper perspective. As you celebrate, remember your calling as a laborer in the kingdom of God, and “rejoice that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20).
Let us pray (Collect for Independence Day from the Book of Common Prayer):
Lord God Almighty, in whose Name the founders of this country won liberty for themselves and for us, and lit the torch of freedom for nations then unborn: Grant that we and all the people of this land may have grace to maintain our liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Fruit of the Spirit
Sermon for Proper 8 C RCL 6/27/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14; Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20; Galatians 5:1, 13-25; Luke 9:51-62
My friends: during the last few weeks, we have been reading through Saint Paul’s Letter to the Galatians in the Sunday lectionary. Next Sunday we will finish with this letter and move on to another. But I cannot leave it this morning without exploring in more detail with you the absolutely stunning pronouncements made by the apostle in this remarkable text.
This entire letter from Paul to the church in Galatia is a spirited and angry defense of his vision for an entirely different kind of religion, one which the world had never before seen. It is not that Paul’s Gospel is a competitive one. He does NOT argue how much better following Christ is than obeying the commands of other gods or the law of Moses. Rather, Paul contends that living in Christ is as vastly different from other ways of living as the sea is from land, as death is from life, as slavery is from freedom. There is no competition here in Paul’s vision, but rather there is an entirely new model for human life.
Law versus grace is how he words it, but be careful not to assume too quickly that you know what he means by these words. Both of those words here actually symbolize an attitude, an approach, a culture – if you will – which stand in sharp contrast with each other.
For Paul, the law stands not only for the Law of Moses but for all of the various human forms of religion that are restrictive and prescriptive. For Paul, these forms are in fact destructive to God’s will and intention for humanity.
I am certain that all of you have seen the damaging effects that religion can have upon people. Surely you’ve known someone who has been psychologically or emotionally damaged by the teachings and practices of certain law-based forms of religion.
Unfortunately, it’s all too common even in the church. This damage comes because here in church we are tapping into forces with enormous power: power in the spiritual world, and power within the human psyche. The religious impulse is so deeply embedded with human beings and it is so easily abused or misused. It is very common for me to speak with folks who have grown up under Roman Catholicism and who have felt crushed by it. They say things to me like, “You know, I don’t understand why I HAVE to confess my sins to some man.”
Then I have to apologize to them for the failures of the church over the years, and explain that these kinds of requirements are in fact contrary to the entire spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “For freedom Christ has set us free.” In Christ, we are free from these kind of requirements to offer sacrifice or to meet the divine demands. This kind of religion is what Paul denounces as the yoke of slavery. What Christ offers us is something entirely different.
In seeking to understand this matter, it is helpful to turn to the great Martin Luther. His commentary on the Letter to the Galatians remains a standard text in church libraries, even though it was written 500 years ago! As a monk and a priest and a professor of theology, Luther struggled for years as he tried to please God with fasting, confessions, and all kinds of penance. But the more he did, the more he felt that he was falling short, and the more he feared the wrath of God. Luther was slaving away under the law, the yoke of slavery, until finally, after much study of the New Testament, his eyes were opened. Listen to how he stated it: “…a totally other face of the entire Scripture showed itself to me.” An entirely new world of grace was opened to him by the Holy Spirit and he began to understand what it means to receive and to live by the Spirit.
Now we must be careful to understand that this freedom of grace in Christ is not the same thing as the radical individualism that has marked our American society since the days of the Colonies. But what then is it? How do we balance the freedom of will and choice that we have in Christ with the imperative to be the servant of others? As Paul says, through love we are to be slaves to one another.
Luther dealt with this question at length in his work titled, “The Freedom on the Christian.” His opening sentence of this work is a classic; it sets the paradox of the Christian life in perfect context. This is what Luther wrote:
“A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to no one. [AND] A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”
Let me repeat that for you so that you can try to wrap your minds around it…It is a paradox, without question. Two opposites which exist together, side-by-side, neither one canceling the other. But, you see, it is BECAUSE we are finally free in the grace of God that we can choose to be a servant of others. We choose to follow Christ; we choose to live within the fellowship of the church; we choose to give ourselves away as the servants of others.
Luther expressed his understanding of this freedom when he said: “God has taken care of my salvation. I am therefore free to take care of my neighbor… [And] My neighbor is every person, especially those who need my help.”
What we have here in this Letter to the Galatians is really quite radical, and it remains difficult for us human beings to grasp it and to accept it. Do you see how drastic Paul is here with his insight? He is suggesting that the requirements of Judaism, which the Galatians seem to be embracing when Paul writes to them because of these rival Missionaries from Jerusalem, is the same kind of slavery as their pagan religious past, with its various required sacrifices and rituals. He is saying that pagan religion and orthodox Judaism both, in essence, represent the same attitude, the same approach, the same mindset toward life and toward God, and that both of these stand in stark contrast to the Gospel.
This is remarkable, coming from Paul, who was himself an orthodox Jew, a Pharisee, one who spent his entire life, before his conversion, seeking to live in faithful obedience to the law. But in Christ, all such striving ends and an entirely different kind of life, springing from a different source, begins and continues for ever.
This reading from Galatians ends with a famous passage about the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. There is no law against such things” (Galatians 5:22-23).
This passage is beautiful, and if you have not put it firmly in your memory, let me encourage you to do so. Memorize it; it will help you. But remember, please, that this is descriptive, not prescriptive. Like the Beatitudes, this passage describes the reality of your life in Christ; it does not provide a list of requirements that you must meet. Rather, it describes the natural outcome of a life led by the Spirit.
One way that this passage has helped me for years now is, in the mornings as I leave my home and go out into the world, as a reminder of who I am. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” As I recite the list, it reminds me that this describes accurately who I am because of the FACT that Christ lives in me. Use it to remind yourself of who you are because Christ lives in you. It makes no difference whether we FEEL like these things or not. We belong to Christ. The Spirit abides in us. We have only to embrace the reality of this new life and live into it, to make it real in our daily lives.
May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us as we live into the newness of this life of grace in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Texts: 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14; Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20; Galatians 5:1, 13-25; Luke 9:51-62
My friends: during the last few weeks, we have been reading through Saint Paul’s Letter to the Galatians in the Sunday lectionary. Next Sunday we will finish with this letter and move on to another. But I cannot leave it this morning without exploring in more detail with you the absolutely stunning pronouncements made by the apostle in this remarkable text.
This entire letter from Paul to the church in Galatia is a spirited and angry defense of his vision for an entirely different kind of religion, one which the world had never before seen. It is not that Paul’s Gospel is a competitive one. He does NOT argue how much better following Christ is than obeying the commands of other gods or the law of Moses. Rather, Paul contends that living in Christ is as vastly different from other ways of living as the sea is from land, as death is from life, as slavery is from freedom. There is no competition here in Paul’s vision, but rather there is an entirely new model for human life.
Law versus grace is how he words it, but be careful not to assume too quickly that you know what he means by these words. Both of those words here actually symbolize an attitude, an approach, a culture – if you will – which stand in sharp contrast with each other.
For Paul, the law stands not only for the Law of Moses but for all of the various human forms of religion that are restrictive and prescriptive. For Paul, these forms are in fact destructive to God’s will and intention for humanity.
I am certain that all of you have seen the damaging effects that religion can have upon people. Surely you’ve known someone who has been psychologically or emotionally damaged by the teachings and practices of certain law-based forms of religion.
Unfortunately, it’s all too common even in the church. This damage comes because here in church we are tapping into forces with enormous power: power in the spiritual world, and power within the human psyche. The religious impulse is so deeply embedded with human beings and it is so easily abused or misused. It is very common for me to speak with folks who have grown up under Roman Catholicism and who have felt crushed by it. They say things to me like, “You know, I don’t understand why I HAVE to confess my sins to some man.”
Then I have to apologize to them for the failures of the church over the years, and explain that these kinds of requirements are in fact contrary to the entire spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “For freedom Christ has set us free.” In Christ, we are free from these kind of requirements to offer sacrifice or to meet the divine demands. This kind of religion is what Paul denounces as the yoke of slavery. What Christ offers us is something entirely different.
In seeking to understand this matter, it is helpful to turn to the great Martin Luther. His commentary on the Letter to the Galatians remains a standard text in church libraries, even though it was written 500 years ago! As a monk and a priest and a professor of theology, Luther struggled for years as he tried to please God with fasting, confessions, and all kinds of penance. But the more he did, the more he felt that he was falling short, and the more he feared the wrath of God. Luther was slaving away under the law, the yoke of slavery, until finally, after much study of the New Testament, his eyes were opened. Listen to how he stated it: “…a totally other face of the entire Scripture showed itself to me.” An entirely new world of grace was opened to him by the Holy Spirit and he began to understand what it means to receive and to live by the Spirit.
Luther dealt with this question at length in his work titled, “The Freedom on the Christian.” His opening sentence of this work is a classic; it sets the paradox of the Christian life in perfect context. This is what Luther wrote:
“A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to no one. [AND] A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”
Let me repeat that for you so that you can try to wrap your minds around it…It is a paradox, without question. Two opposites which exist together, side-by-side, neither one canceling the other. But, you see, it is BECAUSE we are finally free in the grace of God that we can choose to be a servant of others. We choose to follow Christ; we choose to live within the fellowship of the church; we choose to give ourselves away as the servants of others.
Luther expressed his understanding of this freedom when he said: “God has taken care of my salvation. I am therefore free to take care of my neighbor… [And] My neighbor is every person, especially those who need my help.”
What we have here in this Letter to the Galatians is really quite radical, and it remains difficult for us human beings to grasp it and to accept it. Do you see how drastic Paul is here with his insight? He is suggesting that the requirements of Judaism, which the Galatians seem to be embracing when Paul writes to them because of these rival Missionaries from Jerusalem, is the same kind of slavery as their pagan religious past, with its various required sacrifices and rituals. He is saying that pagan religion and orthodox Judaism both, in essence, represent the same attitude, the same approach, the same mindset toward life and toward God, and that both of these stand in stark contrast to the Gospel.
This is remarkable, coming from Paul, who was himself an orthodox Jew, a Pharisee, one who spent his entire life, before his conversion, seeking to live in faithful obedience to the law. But in Christ, all such striving ends and an entirely different kind of life, springing from a different source, begins and continues for ever.
This reading from Galatians ends with a famous passage about the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. There is no law against such things” (Galatians 5:22-23).
This passage is beautiful, and if you have not put it firmly in your memory, let me encourage you to do so. Memorize it; it will help you. But remember, please, that this is descriptive, not prescriptive. Like the Beatitudes, this passage describes the reality of your life in Christ; it does not provide a list of requirements that you must meet. Rather, it describes the natural outcome of a life led by the Spirit.
One way that this passage has helped me for years now is, in the mornings as I leave my home and go out into the world, as a reminder of who I am. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” As I recite the list, it reminds me that this describes accurately who I am because of the FACT that Christ lives in me. Use it to remind yourself of who you are because Christ lives in you. It makes no difference whether we FEEL like these things or not. We belong to Christ. The Spirit abides in us. We have only to embrace the reality of this new life and live into it, to make it real in our daily lives.
May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us as we live into the newness of this life of grace in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
What are you doing here?
Sermon for Proper 7 C RCL 6/20/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: 1 Kings 19:1-15a; Psalm 42&43; Galatians 3:23-29; Luke 8:26-39
Do any of you know the story of St. Alban?
I’m not all that surprised if most of you don’t know it. But it’s a good one. It’s a story that is good for all of us to know.
Alban is the first recorded Christian martyr in England. Traditionally, people have placed his death in the year 304 AD, during the persecution under the Roman Emperor Diocletian; but many scholars now date it as around 209, during the persecution under the Emperor Septimius Severus.
Alban was a pagan citizen in the Roman colony of Britannia. He served as a soldier in the Roman Army. At that time, the Church was beginning to spread and to be a major force in the entire Roman Empire, though there continued to be sporadic efforts to suppress this growing movement.
During one such effort, Alban randomly was moved to give shelter to a Christian priest who was fleeing from arrest. As he observed this stranger’s way of life and his devotion, Alban became touched, and he gave himself to learn from this man what it was that had so captured his love and commitment. Over the days that followed, they talked at length, and Alban made the decision to become a Christian.
Finally, word reached the local authorities that the wanted priest was in Alban’s house, and when Alban saw tem approaching, he rashly decided to throw the priest's cloak over his own head and to give himself up in order to protect the life of his new mentor. This priestly cloak had some sort of hood which hid Alban’s face, but when he was brought before the local magistrates, the hood was removed. Since he was a local man who served in the army, it was instantly realized that this was Alban, and not the fugitive clergyman.
The magistrates challenged Alban to offer sacrifice immediately to the pagan Roman gods and to the Emperor, but he refused. Instead, he declared that he was, in fact, a Christian. And so on the 22nd day of June, the first day of summer, Alban was whipped and then beheaded. Thus he became the first Christian martyr of the British Isles.
By God’s grace, when you wake up on Tuesday morning, June 22, remember St. Alban. Remember the power of a life that is given away in sacrificial love, instead of hoarded and guarded out of fear.
On Friday night, I preached at the Gloucester City Junior-Senior High School Baccalaureate Service, and I spoke to all of those young people about the reality of fear, and how fear so easily holds us back from accomplishing what God has called us to do. Fear of failure. Fear of conflict. Fear of loss. Even the fear of death.
But if you look throughout the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, there is one clear instruction for life, one simple commandment that God gives hundreds of times.
Do you know what it is? One simple instruction given far more than any other, though in many different contexts but always with the same implication. It is simple and clear: Do not be afraid!
Do not be afraid! In Alban’s situation, he had many reasons to be afraid. And yet, somehow, his newfound love for Christ set him free from his fear, and he found himself empowered to act in a way which probably surprised even himself. He gave himself away out of love in order to protect another, and he preferred death to betrayal.
The prophet Elijah was bold and strong. But he was afraid when all of the royal power was directed toward his individual death. He even asked that he might die. As an aside, I don’t think this implies any suicidal attempt on his part, but rather a complete abandonment of his hope for life. “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors” (1 Kings 19:4).
He had reason to be afraid, and yet, when he sought God on the holy mountain, at Sinai, he was given new strength to complete the task that God had given him. In the sound of sheer silence, a soft sound, God drew near to Elijah and spoke: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” And after Elijah’s explanation, God responded to him and said: “Go.”
When Jesus had thrown that demon out of the crazy man of the Gerasenes, the people were afraid. You might think that they would recognize this as a great and wonderful action. But it seems that they found this intervention into their community to be threatening. Jesus was frightening to them. He was changing people, making them unrecognizable. He was acting beyond their control. And they were not able to accept his actions. And so Jesus left them and continued on his way.
Fear and love. Two of the most powerful forces in our lives, and yet forces which lead us in drastically different directions. There is a huge difference between actions which are motivated by fear, and those that are motivated by love. A world of difference between these! Think back on your own experiences and you will see that this is true.
Perhaps, on this Father’s Day, if you reflect upon your experiences with your father, perhaps you can see the qualitative difference between those times when fear and love provided the motivating and driving force in your actions.
But today we find ourselves gathered together here in worship. And therefore, to use the same question which God put to Elijah when he sought to draw near to God, now I ask you: what are you doing here? Or more specifically, what is the motivation that is driving you today?
Is it fear, or is it love? Are you acting out of fear of failure, fear of loss, fear of death? Or have you opened your heart to this powerful Lord Jesus who changes things, who acts in ways that are often unpredictable, and yet who always seeks to restore us to our “right minds”?
Paul wrote that “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ” (Galatians 3:27). If we the baptized have put on Christ, if we have clothed ourselves for all eternity with Christ, then we have been immersed in that perfect love which casts out fear.
Embrace it, my friends. Like St. Alban so long ago, allow Christ to set you free to live this life without fear. Allow Christ to empower you to be bold and courageous, firmly set upon the sure foundation of his lovingkindness. Amen.
A Prayer for Fathers:
O Lord, our Heavenly Father:
You, who adopt orphan children and care for the widows;
You stand at the door staring at the horizon,
desiring that your prodigal children come home.
Bless our fathers, wherever they may be this day, with strength and grace
So that orphans may have role models,
that widows may be provided what they need,
that those future fathers in our midst may see Christ reflected in the love
shared in piggy-back rides, wiffle-ball games and also the hard-learned lessons of life.
Through Christ we pray to the Father of all. Amen.
Texts: 1 Kings 19:1-15a; Psalm 42&43; Galatians 3:23-29; Luke 8:26-39
Do any of you know the story of St. Alban?
I’m not all that surprised if most of you don’t know it. But it’s a good one. It’s a story that is good for all of us to know.
Alban is the first recorded Christian martyr in England. Traditionally, people have placed his death in the year 304 AD, during the persecution under the Roman Emperor Diocletian; but many scholars now date it as around 209, during the persecution under the Emperor Septimius Severus.
Alban was a pagan citizen in the Roman colony of Britannia. He served as a soldier in the Roman Army. At that time, the Church was beginning to spread and to be a major force in the entire Roman Empire, though there continued to be sporadic efforts to suppress this growing movement.
During one such effort, Alban randomly was moved to give shelter to a Christian priest who was fleeing from arrest. As he observed this stranger’s way of life and his devotion, Alban became touched, and he gave himself to learn from this man what it was that had so captured his love and commitment. Over the days that followed, they talked at length, and Alban made the decision to become a Christian.
Finally, word reached the local authorities that the wanted priest was in Alban’s house, and when Alban saw tem approaching, he rashly decided to throw the priest's cloak over his own head and to give himself up in order to protect the life of his new mentor. This priestly cloak had some sort of hood which hid Alban’s face, but when he was brought before the local magistrates, the hood was removed. Since he was a local man who served in the army, it was instantly realized that this was Alban, and not the fugitive clergyman.
The magistrates challenged Alban to offer sacrifice immediately to the pagan Roman gods and to the Emperor, but he refused. Instead, he declared that he was, in fact, a Christian. And so on the 22nd day of June, the first day of summer, Alban was whipped and then beheaded. Thus he became the first Christian martyr of the British Isles.
By God’s grace, when you wake up on Tuesday morning, June 22, remember St. Alban. Remember the power of a life that is given away in sacrificial love, instead of hoarded and guarded out of fear.
On Friday night, I preached at the Gloucester City Junior-Senior High School Baccalaureate Service, and I spoke to all of those young people about the reality of fear, and how fear so easily holds us back from accomplishing what God has called us to do. Fear of failure. Fear of conflict. Fear of loss. Even the fear of death.
But if you look throughout the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, there is one clear instruction for life, one simple commandment that God gives hundreds of times.
Do you know what it is? One simple instruction given far more than any other, though in many different contexts but always with the same implication. It is simple and clear: Do not be afraid!
Do not be afraid! In Alban’s situation, he had many reasons to be afraid. And yet, somehow, his newfound love for Christ set him free from his fear, and he found himself empowered to act in a way which probably surprised even himself. He gave himself away out of love in order to protect another, and he preferred death to betrayal.
The prophet Elijah was bold and strong. But he was afraid when all of the royal power was directed toward his individual death. He even asked that he might die. As an aside, I don’t think this implies any suicidal attempt on his part, but rather a complete abandonment of his hope for life. “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors” (1 Kings 19:4).
He had reason to be afraid, and yet, when he sought God on the holy mountain, at Sinai, he was given new strength to complete the task that God had given him. In the sound of sheer silence, a soft sound, God drew near to Elijah and spoke: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” And after Elijah’s explanation, God responded to him and said: “Go.”
When Jesus had thrown that demon out of the crazy man of the Gerasenes, the people were afraid. You might think that they would recognize this as a great and wonderful action. But it seems that they found this intervention into their community to be threatening. Jesus was frightening to them. He was changing people, making them unrecognizable. He was acting beyond their control. And they were not able to accept his actions. And so Jesus left them and continued on his way.
Fear and love. Two of the most powerful forces in our lives, and yet forces which lead us in drastically different directions. There is a huge difference between actions which are motivated by fear, and those that are motivated by love. A world of difference between these! Think back on your own experiences and you will see that this is true.
Perhaps, on this Father’s Day, if you reflect upon your experiences with your father, perhaps you can see the qualitative difference between those times when fear and love provided the motivating and driving force in your actions.
But today we find ourselves gathered together here in worship. And therefore, to use the same question which God put to Elijah when he sought to draw near to God, now I ask you: what are you doing here? Or more specifically, what is the motivation that is driving you today?
Is it fear, or is it love? Are you acting out of fear of failure, fear of loss, fear of death? Or have you opened your heart to this powerful Lord Jesus who changes things, who acts in ways that are often unpredictable, and yet who always seeks to restore us to our “right minds”?
Paul wrote that “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ” (Galatians 3:27). If we the baptized have put on Christ, if we have clothed ourselves for all eternity with Christ, then we have been immersed in that perfect love which casts out fear.
Embrace it, my friends. Like St. Alban so long ago, allow Christ to set you free to live this life without fear. Allow Christ to empower you to be bold and courageous, firmly set upon the sure foundation of his lovingkindness. Amen.
A Prayer for Fathers:
O Lord, our Heavenly Father:
You, who adopt orphan children and care for the widows;
You stand at the door staring at the horizon,
desiring that your prodigal children come home.
Bless our fathers, wherever they may be this day, with strength and grace
So that orphans may have role models,
that widows may be provided what they need,
that those future fathers in our midst may see Christ reflected in the love
shared in piggy-back rides, wiffle-ball games and also the hard-learned lessons of life.
Through Christ we pray to the Father of all. Amen.
Baccalaureate: The Spirit of Power
Sermon for the Gloucester City Junior-Senior High School Baccalaureate, 6/11/2010
Texts: 2Timothy 1:1-10
Congratulations to all of you on reaching this milestone in your lives, on achieving graduation out of our American system of mandatory public education!
Right now, you are standing at the threshold of a great transition in your life, one of the most important transitions in your life. Many changes are coming for you which will affect the entire course of your life. Many of these changes will be beyond your ability to control. And whenever any person stands at a crossroads such as this, then one must make a series of decisions about how to proceed forward into an unknown future.
But before we go any further, I have a question for you, and I want you to think about this for a minute: What is the most often repeated instruction given by God to the people in the Bible? Throughout the whole course of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, what do you think is the most common commandment that God gives to us human beings? One instruction that is repeated hundreds of times, in different contexts and in different ways, but always with the same implication.
Do you know what it is? The simple and clear commandment is this: Do not be afraid!
Do not be afraid! More often than anything else, when we read the Bible, we find God telling people over and over again not to be afraid!
Think about this. There is an important message here for us in this truth, because fear is one of the most debilitating forces in any human life.
At any moment when human beings are forced to change, and uncertain outcomes lie in waiting in the future, the most common human response is fear. Remember that you now stand at such a moment, and who knows but that events in your life might begin to move in directions that you never expected nor desired. It is quite likely that fear will begin to raise its ugly head.
And so let me call you again to pay heed to these words of holy scripture which we just heard read in our midst. St. Paul writes here to his disciple, his student, Timothy, whom he has appointed and set in place as the spiritual leader of the Christians in Ephesus. In a sense, Timothy has graduated out of Paul’s training, and now he has been sent forth to undertake a very important task. And Paul reminds him of this truth.
“God did not give us a spirit of timidity [or cowardice], but the Spirit of power and love and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).
You are graduating; you are being sent forth to undertake your important task in the world, and believe me, God is speaking these same words to you. Because God has called you, and me, all of us, to live each day in this Spirit of power, this Spirit of love, this Spirit of self-discipline, and NOT to be chained and shackled by the thorns of fear and anxiety which can so easily strangle the freedom of the human heart.
Here is another question: what do you think is the one fear which most commonly afflicts human beings? Do you know it? It is the fear of death.
I see it all the time. So many people are afraid to die. Well, tonight, I’m going to let you in on a little secret: you, my friends, are going to die one day.
Now, I know that might seem like a morbid thought at such a time of celebration, but I am convinced that it’s vitally important, and here’s why.
All of the saints, the wise men and women who have learned from Jesus how to live a full and abundant life, all of them teach that we cannot be free to fully live until we are at peace with our death. Once you are able to become free from this fear, then you can fully live. Then you can fully accomplish that purpose which God has placed before you.
To live with wisdom, then, is to neither seek after death foolishly, nor to be afraid of it.
But why is this important? What difference does this make for you right now? Because, my friends, you are beginning now to pursue your life task. You are beginning your journey of offering your unique gifts and talents to the world.
As you do this, please remember: any life task that you will pursue as you move forward from here is worthy of honor if it demands some self-sacrifice. It must require something deep and real from inside you. It must draw out from you the potential that lies deep within. Your task will be honorable and real if it costs you. And that can be a scary prospect.
Of course, I have been called to the task of serving as a Christian pastor, and it is my firm conviction that this task, this ministry of guiding others into a full and abundant life as a disciple of Jesus Christ – I believe that this is the life task that is the most honorable and admirable. And so I do hope and pray that some of you will seriously consider giving your life to this task, making a commitment to a career as a pastor in the church.
But whatever life task it is to which you are called, make sure that it is one which is worthy of honor, and that you fulfill your task with honor and intregity.
It seems like every week we hear reports of leaders – in politics, in the church, in sports, in the military, in the business world – who fail to walk with integrity. They fail in keeping the commitments that they have made. Most often, if you dig deep enough, you will see that fail because they are afraid. But you, my friends, you can do better. You can be better.
Your life will be measured by the commitments that you are able to make, and able to keep. As we all know: talk is cheap. Truth and integrity in action are what truly matters.
Listen again to these words from St. Paul: “That is why I am reminding you to fan into a flame the gift of God that you possess through the laying on of my hands” (2 Tim. 1:6).
God has given each of you a special gift, and right now you have the opportunity to fan that small spark of a gift into a blazing fire. It is your unique calling, your distinct identity, your individual gift to the world, given by God “according to God’s own purpose and by God’s own grace” (2 Tim. 1:9).
It’s not going to be easy for you; at least I hope not. It takes strength to know who you are, and to never allow the forces of fear to blow you off course, to push you away from your calling. It takes determination when obstacles and roadblocks are put before you. But have no fear. Those are given to test your resolve, to make you stronger and more dedicated than before.
I will not stand before you here and repeat the old mantra that “you can be whoever you want to be and do whatever you want to do.” Perhaps, and perhaps not. If only life were that simple. But what I will stand here to say, and say loudly, is that you can be yourself! You can be who God has made you to be. And THAT is enough, my friends. If you can do that with integrity, walking a path of honor and respect, than I am confident that you will lead a life worthy of the Lord who calls you.
After all, we only get one shot at this life, one go-around on this crazy ride of life. Make it count. Be who God has made you to be. Do not allow fear of failure, fear of the unknown, or even the fear of death, keep you from accomplishing the task that God has set before you. Live without fear, my friends, walk in the strength and power of the Lord. Amen.
Let us pray:
O God, our heavenly Father, you see your children here who have grown up in this unsteady and confusing world: Show them, Lord, that your ways give more life than the ways of this world, and that following you is far better than chasing after selfish goals. Set them free from the shackles of fear, and help them to accept their failures, not as a measure of their worth, but as opportunities for a new start. Give them strength always to maintain their trust in you, and to keep alive their joy in your creation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Texts: 2Timothy 1:1-10
Congratulations to all of you on reaching this milestone in your lives, on achieving graduation out of our American system of mandatory public education!
Right now, you are standing at the threshold of a great transition in your life, one of the most important transitions in your life. Many changes are coming for you which will affect the entire course of your life. Many of these changes will be beyond your ability to control. And whenever any person stands at a crossroads such as this, then one must make a series of decisions about how to proceed forward into an unknown future.
But before we go any further, I have a question for you, and I want you to think about this for a minute: What is the most often repeated instruction given by God to the people in the Bible? Throughout the whole course of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, what do you think is the most common commandment that God gives to us human beings? One instruction that is repeated hundreds of times, in different contexts and in different ways, but always with the same implication.
Do you know what it is? The simple and clear commandment is this: Do not be afraid!
Do not be afraid! More often than anything else, when we read the Bible, we find God telling people over and over again not to be afraid!
Think about this. There is an important message here for us in this truth, because fear is one of the most debilitating forces in any human life.
At any moment when human beings are forced to change, and uncertain outcomes lie in waiting in the future, the most common human response is fear. Remember that you now stand at such a moment, and who knows but that events in your life might begin to move in directions that you never expected nor desired. It is quite likely that fear will begin to raise its ugly head.
And so let me call you again to pay heed to these words of holy scripture which we just heard read in our midst. St. Paul writes here to his disciple, his student, Timothy, whom he has appointed and set in place as the spiritual leader of the Christians in Ephesus. In a sense, Timothy has graduated out of Paul’s training, and now he has been sent forth to undertake a very important task. And Paul reminds him of this truth.
“God did not give us a spirit of timidity [or cowardice], but the Spirit of power and love and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).
You are graduating; you are being sent forth to undertake your important task in the world, and believe me, God is speaking these same words to you. Because God has called you, and me, all of us, to live each day in this Spirit of power, this Spirit of love, this Spirit of self-discipline, and NOT to be chained and shackled by the thorns of fear and anxiety which can so easily strangle the freedom of the human heart.
Here is another question: what do you think is the one fear which most commonly afflicts human beings? Do you know it? It is the fear of death.
I see it all the time. So many people are afraid to die. Well, tonight, I’m going to let you in on a little secret: you, my friends, are going to die one day.
Now, I know that might seem like a morbid thought at such a time of celebration, but I am convinced that it’s vitally important, and here’s why.
All of the saints, the wise men and women who have learned from Jesus how to live a full and abundant life, all of them teach that we cannot be free to fully live until we are at peace with our death. Once you are able to become free from this fear, then you can fully live. Then you can fully accomplish that purpose which God has placed before you.
To live with wisdom, then, is to neither seek after death foolishly, nor to be afraid of it.
But why is this important? What difference does this make for you right now? Because, my friends, you are beginning now to pursue your life task. You are beginning your journey of offering your unique gifts and talents to the world.
As you do this, please remember: any life task that you will pursue as you move forward from here is worthy of honor if it demands some self-sacrifice. It must require something deep and real from inside you. It must draw out from you the potential that lies deep within. Your task will be honorable and real if it costs you. And that can be a scary prospect.
Of course, I have been called to the task of serving as a Christian pastor, and it is my firm conviction that this task, this ministry of guiding others into a full and abundant life as a disciple of Jesus Christ – I believe that this is the life task that is the most honorable and admirable. And so I do hope and pray that some of you will seriously consider giving your life to this task, making a commitment to a career as a pastor in the church.
But whatever life task it is to which you are called, make sure that it is one which is worthy of honor, and that you fulfill your task with honor and intregity.
It seems like every week we hear reports of leaders – in politics, in the church, in sports, in the military, in the business world – who fail to walk with integrity. They fail in keeping the commitments that they have made. Most often, if you dig deep enough, you will see that fail because they are afraid. But you, my friends, you can do better. You can be better.
Your life will be measured by the commitments that you are able to make, and able to keep. As we all know: talk is cheap. Truth and integrity in action are what truly matters.
Listen again to these words from St. Paul: “That is why I am reminding you to fan into a flame the gift of God that you possess through the laying on of my hands” (2 Tim. 1:6).
God has given each of you a special gift, and right now you have the opportunity to fan that small spark of a gift into a blazing fire. It is your unique calling, your distinct identity, your individual gift to the world, given by God “according to God’s own purpose and by God’s own grace” (2 Tim. 1:9).
It’s not going to be easy for you; at least I hope not. It takes strength to know who you are, and to never allow the forces of fear to blow you off course, to push you away from your calling. It takes determination when obstacles and roadblocks are put before you. But have no fear. Those are given to test your resolve, to make you stronger and more dedicated than before.
I will not stand before you here and repeat the old mantra that “you can be whoever you want to be and do whatever you want to do.” Perhaps, and perhaps not. If only life were that simple. But what I will stand here to say, and say loudly, is that you can be yourself! You can be who God has made you to be. And THAT is enough, my friends. If you can do that with integrity, walking a path of honor and respect, than I am confident that you will lead a life worthy of the Lord who calls you.
After all, we only get one shot at this life, one go-around on this crazy ride of life. Make it count. Be who God has made you to be. Do not allow fear of failure, fear of the unknown, or even the fear of death, keep you from accomplishing the task that God has set before you. Live without fear, my friends, walk in the strength and power of the Lord. Amen.
Let us pray:
O God, our heavenly Father, you see your children here who have grown up in this unsteady and confusing world: Show them, Lord, that your ways give more life than the ways of this world, and that following you is far better than chasing after selfish goals. Set them free from the shackles of fear, and help them to accept their failures, not as a measure of their worth, but as opportunities for a new start. Give them strength always to maintain their trust in you, and to keep alive their joy in your creation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Monday, June 14, 2010
The Blessing of a Civil Union: Agape Love in Action
For any of you doubters out there, let me assure you that presiding at the Blessing of a Civil Union is some of the best evangelism work I have been part of in a long time. So many folks in the LGBT community have been taught, and have seen in action, horrible distortions of what the gospel of Jesus Christ truly is. What a privilege to have the opportunity to present a (hopefully) clearer image of our Lord Jesus. May he take these efforts and bless them for the sake of the Kingdom.
A Homily for the Blessing of the Civil Union of Joe Ryan and Dennis Gerst 6/13/2010, offered by Nathan Ferrell at Church of the Holy Spirit in Bellmawr, NJ
Texts: Colossians 3:12-17; Psalm 67; Matthew 7:21, 24-29
It is a privilege and an honor to stand here today as a witness to this relationship between Dennis and Joe, which has in reality already stood the test of time.
Our task here today is not to create something new, but rather to give our witness to what God has already done in the lives of these two, to give them our blessing, and to ask for God’s continued blessing upon them.
But I am certain that most of the heavy lifting, the hard work of creating relationships that last, has already been done by Joe and Dennis. For no relationship can last if the partners are not willing or able to do the things that we have just heard spoken about in these scriptures: to be patient with one another, to forgive one another, to have compassion on one another, to encourage the growth and well-being of one another.
After all, this is what Jesus teaches us in his parable of the house that is built on the solid rock. That kind of house is a relationship where compassion and kindness and humility and patience are put into practice by intention and commitment.
We here in the Church have always proclaimed that the truth which we just sang about, that God is love. After all, the sole reason for our existence as a community is our conviction that, in the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, God has intervened in history out of compassionate love for the world.
But making that affirmation open us up to a lot of criticism, because many people seem to think that we imagine this loving God to be some sort of cream puff in the sky, the great big Sugar Daddy who gives us whatever we want and will never say ‘no’ to us.
But, in fact, we do mean something very specific when we in the Church use that word “love”. We are definitely NOT intending the same meaning as the singers of pop music. Because of my young girls, I am forced to listen way too much to pop song, and recently it has been the song by Ke$ha, “Your love, your love, your love is my drug.”
In truth, we understand that there is no real love with accountability. This love of God we call agape from the ancient Greek, and this agape love is one that is passionately committed to the growth and well-being of the other. When we frail humans are inclined to self-destruct, God intervenes with compassionate love, not giving us what we want, but providing what we need to grow and become who we are created in essence to be.
This agape love is at the center of every committed, accountable Christian union of two souls. At its best, this kind of Christ-centered relationship provides the ideal environment in which we can grow and develop to our fullest potential. This is living on the foundation of solid rock, rooted and grounded in a love that is strong enough to weather the storms that life inevitably brings our way, and to continue on with compassion and patience.
So, thank you, you two, for already giving us an example of what this kind of commitment looks like in practice. And may God give you both grace to carry on in this way for many more years to come. Amen.
A Homily for the Blessing of the Civil Union of Joe Ryan and Dennis Gerst 6/13/2010, offered by Nathan Ferrell at Church of the Holy Spirit in Bellmawr, NJ
Texts: Colossians 3:12-17; Psalm 67; Matthew 7:21, 24-29
It is a privilege and an honor to stand here today as a witness to this relationship between Dennis and Joe, which has in reality already stood the test of time.
Our task here today is not to create something new, but rather to give our witness to what God has already done in the lives of these two, to give them our blessing, and to ask for God’s continued blessing upon them.
But I am certain that most of the heavy lifting, the hard work of creating relationships that last, has already been done by Joe and Dennis. For no relationship can last if the partners are not willing or able to do the things that we have just heard spoken about in these scriptures: to be patient with one another, to forgive one another, to have compassion on one another, to encourage the growth and well-being of one another.
After all, this is what Jesus teaches us in his parable of the house that is built on the solid rock. That kind of house is a relationship where compassion and kindness and humility and patience are put into practice by intention and commitment.
We here in the Church have always proclaimed that the truth which we just sang about, that God is love. After all, the sole reason for our existence as a community is our conviction that, in the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, God has intervened in history out of compassionate love for the world.
But making that affirmation open us up to a lot of criticism, because many people seem to think that we imagine this loving God to be some sort of cream puff in the sky, the great big Sugar Daddy who gives us whatever we want and will never say ‘no’ to us.
But, in fact, we do mean something very specific when we in the Church use that word “love”. We are definitely NOT intending the same meaning as the singers of pop music. Because of my young girls, I am forced to listen way too much to pop song, and recently it has been the song by Ke$ha, “Your love, your love, your love is my drug.”
In truth, we understand that there is no real love with accountability. This love of God we call agape from the ancient Greek, and this agape love is one that is passionately committed to the growth and well-being of the other. When we frail humans are inclined to self-destruct, God intervenes with compassionate love, not giving us what we want, but providing what we need to grow and become who we are created in essence to be.
This agape love is at the center of every committed, accountable Christian union of two souls. At its best, this kind of Christ-centered relationship provides the ideal environment in which we can grow and develop to our fullest potential. This is living on the foundation of solid rock, rooted and grounded in a love that is strong enough to weather the storms that life inevitably brings our way, and to continue on with compassion and patience.
So, thank you, you two, for already giving us an example of what this kind of commitment looks like in practice. And may God give you both grace to carry on in this way for many more years to come. Amen.
Gave Himself for Me
Sermon for Proper 6 C RCL 6/13/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: 1 Kings 21:1-10, 15-21a; Psalm 5:1-8; Galatians 2:15-21; Luke 7:36-8:3
I must confess to you that I truly love the stories of the prophet Elijah, that feisty and fiery man of God who was fearless and brave and filled with the Spirit of God. Throughout the summer, we will be hearing the stories of his life and of the life of his successor, the prophet Elisha. If you have not read these stories in a long time, or perhaps ever before, let me strongly encourage you to pick up your Bible at some quiet point over the course of this summer, and read through the 2 Books of Kings, 1st and 2nd Kings. These books might not be quite as saucy as the mystery thriller or bodice-ripper novel that you are eyeing up for the beach, but these ancient stories and rich and deep and offer much in the way of intrigue and insight.
Without question, Elijah is one of the most important figures in the whole of the Bible. Today, we see him in his characteristic role of speaking truth to power, serving as the conscience of the powerful, to remind them that they have a duty to protect the innocent and to serve justice within the community.
More specifically, Elijah was called and commissioned by God to controvert the wickedness of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. In a very real way, his calling was direct and personal. God knew the thoughts and desires of Ahab, and knew the scheming greed of Jezebel, and sent Elijah to protect the innocent who stood in their path.
After all, God is the one “to [whom] all hearts are open, all desires know, and from [whom] no secrets are hid” (BCP P. 355).
In the Gospel of Luke, we are today presented with a woman very different from Queen Jezebel: the anonymous sinner, a woman of the city, who wept at Jesus’ feet, seemingly for no other reason but for the great love and compassion that she felt when he was near.
Both of these stories point to the direct and personal nature of God’s interactions with us. It is not enough to consider the gracious salvation that God offers to humanity in the abstract, and to give thanks for God’s actions with a detached sense of gratitude. With God, there is no abstract.
Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” It is the same with us today: Jesus has something to say to me, to you, something direct and personal to the state of our hearts today. We must open ourselves and allow the word of the Lord to our hearts directly and with immediate effect.
Like the woman of the city, we have to come to Jesus himself. This Christian life that we are leading: it is always direct and personal. It is never indirect and theoretical.
We are called to come to Jesus, the living Christ who loves you and gave himself for you. This is the same message that we hear in St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians. Commenting on this letter of the apostle, the great St. John Chrysostom, the Bishop of Constantinople in the 4th century, spoke these words in one of his homilies:
"What are you doing, Paul, making common things your own, and claiming for yourself what was done on behalf of the whole world? For he says not [the Son of God] “who loved us” but “who loved me”…Burning with desire toward [Christ], [Paul] utters this. ..He shows that each of us ought to render as much thanks to Christ as though Christ had come for him alone. For God would not have withheld this gift even from one person. [God] has the same love for every individual as for the whole world.”
This is the peculiar distinctiveness of the Christian Church. It is not commitment to an ideal that brings us together, like a political party or philosophical club. It is our personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and our personal relationships with one another.
There is so much misunderstanding about this in the world around us. Just a few weeks back, I received a phone call that displays this perfectly. Haven gotten my cell number from the Church of the Ascension voicemail, a woman called me and asked, “Yeah, I’d like to know, Pastor, does your church do weddings?” You know, that’s a pretty odd question, I think. So I said, “Yes, we bless the marriages of our people in our church. Yes, that is what we do. And who, may I ask, is calling?” She quickly replied, “Oh, I am calling for my mother-in-law. But we’re not church-goers. We believe in God but we don’t attend any church right now.”
Well, I thought at that moment, if that’s the case, then why bother with getting married in the church at all? I didn’t say it this time, but my usual response is, “Well, my friend, that doesn’t make a lot of sense. If you’d like to join the church and learn more about Jesus, then I’d be glad to talk with you about getting married in the church. Otherwise, you’re putting the cart before the horse.”
Think about it, my friends: to say that you believe in God but will not be part of a church community is exactly like saying you believe in marriage but are not willing to be married! You like the idea of being married but you are not willing to make the direct and personal commitment to another particular human being, which is what marriage is all about! It's like saying you believe in education but are not willing to ever enter a classroom! Like saying you believe in the practice of medicine but are unwilling to consult with a trained doctor!
Likewise, many people like the idea of God, but they have no plan to invest in a direct and personal relationship with Jesus, and so they are not ready or willing to make the commitment to be part of what God is actively doing in the world by joining together in the fellowship of the church.
But what really matters in life is not the abstract ideas in your head, but the practical, real-life, daily living with others, working together to do something important, to be something important, to live in a loving relationship with Jesus and with those others who have been baptized into his family.
This is why in reality I cannot be a Christian if I am unconnected to the Body of Christ! For then I am an orphan, cut off from my natural family. Then I am a Christian in an abstract sense only, but not in any sense that is real or meaningful.
And that is why I say over and over again that there is no such thing as Christianity. That abstract idea doesn’t exist. But what does exist is a real-life person, Jesus Christ, who is in relationship with real-life human beings, who gather together to love one another and to serve the poor, to worship and to learn. What does exist is concrete and tangible real: it is Jesus and his church.
What about you? How has Jesus spoken to you directly? Can you join with St. Paul in his passionate affirmation of what Christ has done in his heart?
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:19).
May it be so among all of us who are called by the name of Christian. Amen.
Texts: 1 Kings 21:1-10, 15-21a; Psalm 5:1-8; Galatians 2:15-21; Luke 7:36-8:3
I must confess to you that I truly love the stories of the prophet Elijah, that feisty and fiery man of God who was fearless and brave and filled with the Spirit of God. Throughout the summer, we will be hearing the stories of his life and of the life of his successor, the prophet Elisha. If you have not read these stories in a long time, or perhaps ever before, let me strongly encourage you to pick up your Bible at some quiet point over the course of this summer, and read through the 2 Books of Kings, 1st and 2nd Kings. These books might not be quite as saucy as the mystery thriller or bodice-ripper novel that you are eyeing up for the beach, but these ancient stories and rich and deep and offer much in the way of intrigue and insight.
Without question, Elijah is one of the most important figures in the whole of the Bible. Today, we see him in his characteristic role of speaking truth to power, serving as the conscience of the powerful, to remind them that they have a duty to protect the innocent and to serve justice within the community.
More specifically, Elijah was called and commissioned by God to controvert the wickedness of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. In a very real way, his calling was direct and personal. God knew the thoughts and desires of Ahab, and knew the scheming greed of Jezebel, and sent Elijah to protect the innocent who stood in their path.
After all, God is the one “to [whom] all hearts are open, all desires know, and from [whom] no secrets are hid” (BCP P. 355).
In the Gospel of Luke, we are today presented with a woman very different from Queen Jezebel: the anonymous sinner, a woman of the city, who wept at Jesus’ feet, seemingly for no other reason but for the great love and compassion that she felt when he was near.
Both of these stories point to the direct and personal nature of God’s interactions with us. It is not enough to consider the gracious salvation that God offers to humanity in the abstract, and to give thanks for God’s actions with a detached sense of gratitude. With God, there is no abstract.
Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” It is the same with us today: Jesus has something to say to me, to you, something direct and personal to the state of our hearts today. We must open ourselves and allow the word of the Lord to our hearts directly and with immediate effect.
Like the woman of the city, we have to come to Jesus himself. This Christian life that we are leading: it is always direct and personal. It is never indirect and theoretical.
We are called to come to Jesus, the living Christ who loves you and gave himself for you. This is the same message that we hear in St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians. Commenting on this letter of the apostle, the great St. John Chrysostom, the Bishop of Constantinople in the 4th century, spoke these words in one of his homilies:
"What are you doing, Paul, making common things your own, and claiming for yourself what was done on behalf of the whole world? For he says not [the Son of God] “who loved us” but “who loved me”…Burning with desire toward [Christ], [Paul] utters this. ..He shows that each of us ought to render as much thanks to Christ as though Christ had come for him alone. For God would not have withheld this gift even from one person. [God] has the same love for every individual as for the whole world.”
This is the peculiar distinctiveness of the Christian Church. It is not commitment to an ideal that brings us together, like a political party or philosophical club. It is our personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and our personal relationships with one another.
There is so much misunderstanding about this in the world around us. Just a few weeks back, I received a phone call that displays this perfectly. Haven gotten my cell number from the Church of the Ascension voicemail, a woman called me and asked, “Yeah, I’d like to know, Pastor, does your church do weddings?” You know, that’s a pretty odd question, I think. So I said, “Yes, we bless the marriages of our people in our church. Yes, that is what we do. And who, may I ask, is calling?” She quickly replied, “Oh, I am calling for my mother-in-law. But we’re not church-goers. We believe in God but we don’t attend any church right now.”
Well, I thought at that moment, if that’s the case, then why bother with getting married in the church at all? I didn’t say it this time, but my usual response is, “Well, my friend, that doesn’t make a lot of sense. If you’d like to join the church and learn more about Jesus, then I’d be glad to talk with you about getting married in the church. Otherwise, you’re putting the cart before the horse.”
Think about it, my friends: to say that you believe in God but will not be part of a church community is exactly like saying you believe in marriage but are not willing to be married! You like the idea of being married but you are not willing to make the direct and personal commitment to another particular human being, which is what marriage is all about! It's like saying you believe in education but are not willing to ever enter a classroom! Like saying you believe in the practice of medicine but are unwilling to consult with a trained doctor!
Likewise, many people like the idea of God, but they have no plan to invest in a direct and personal relationship with Jesus, and so they are not ready or willing to make the commitment to be part of what God is actively doing in the world by joining together in the fellowship of the church.
But what really matters in life is not the abstract ideas in your head, but the practical, real-life, daily living with others, working together to do something important, to be something important, to live in a loving relationship with Jesus and with those others who have been baptized into his family.
This is why in reality I cannot be a Christian if I am unconnected to the Body of Christ! For then I am an orphan, cut off from my natural family. Then I am a Christian in an abstract sense only, but not in any sense that is real or meaningful.
And that is why I say over and over again that there is no such thing as Christianity. That abstract idea doesn’t exist. But what does exist is a real-life person, Jesus Christ, who is in relationship with real-life human beings, who gather together to love one another and to serve the poor, to worship and to learn. What does exist is concrete and tangible real: it is Jesus and his church.
What about you? How has Jesus spoken to you directly? Can you join with St. Paul in his passionate affirmation of what Christ has done in his heart?
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:19).
May it be so among all of us who are called by the name of Christian. Amen.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
A Revelation of Jesus Christ
Sermon for Proper 5 C RCL 6/6/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: 1 Kings 17:8-16; Psalm 146; Galatians 1:11-24; Luke 7:11-17
Title: A Revelation of Jesus Christ
Have any of you had a conversation about God with someone in the last few months? I mean, with someone who is not a member of your household. Have you had a conversation recently where God was brought up and in which you discussed matters of spiritual importance?
I had one of these conversations last Sunday afternoon, at a block party cookout on our street. Out of the blue, the grandmother of Fiona’s friend said to me: “Don’t you think the world would be a much better place if there weren’t any religions at all? Because it always seems that religion is in the middle of all the world’s problems.”
Obviously, I couldn’t leave that statement alone. I had to come back and say, No, in fact, I do not believe at all that religion is the problem in the world, but rather the pursuit of power and greed and prejudice and fear. People simply use religion for these ends, because religion is such a powerful force in human lives. And actually, I suggested, this suggestion is quite naïve. Human beings always have, and always will, worship something. The important thing is what we worship, and who we follow. It is crucial that we get this right, otherwise horrible consequences can follow.
So this got me thinking about what all of you might experience this summer. There’s a good chance that, at a cookout or a picnic, or at the shore, on vacation – that somewhere this summer, if you are open to it, you may have a good conversation with someone about God and about your faith.
I thought about this possibility while digging into today’s reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians. In this letter, Paul has to defend his preaching of the Gospel against new missionaries who have come from Jerusalem and who are attempting to persuade the Greek Galatian Christians that they need something more. What Paul taught is good, these missionaries said, but it is not enough. They also need to learn about the traditions of Judaism and, in fact, to become Jews. In this way, they can enter fully into the covenant.
This summer, as we travel and talk with different folks about life, we need to know the reason for the hope that is in us. We need to have a way to talk with people about who Jesus is, and why it is so important for us to trust in Him.
On the back of your bulletin, I have included two quotes from the writings of C.S. Lewis, the great Anglican apologist of the last century. These two sections both distill the same argument that he makes about the central reality of who Jesus is, though in different contexts.
You may remember the context of the story at the bottom, taken from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Chapter 5). It goes like this:
“Logic!” said the Professor half to himself. “Why don’t they teach logic at these schools? There are only three possibilities. Either your sister [Lucy] is telling lies, or she is mad, or she is telling the truth. You know she doesn’t tell lies and it is obvious that she is not mad. For the moment, and unless any further evidence turns up, we must assume that she is telling the truth. “
Susan looked at him very hard and was quite sure from the expression on his face that he was not making fun of them.
“But how could it be true, sir?” said Peter.
“Why do you say that?” asked the Professor.
“Well, for one thing,” said Peter, “if it was real, why doesn’t everyone find this country [of Narnia] every time they go to the wardrobe? I mean, there was nothing there when we looked; even Lucy didn’t pretend there was.”
“What has that to do with it?” said the Professor.
“Well, sir, if things are real, they’re there all the time.”
“Are they?” said the Professor; and Peter did not know quite what to say.
At this point, Peter and Susan, the older siblings, are at their wits end with Lucy’s story about Narnia, since they have not yet experienced it themselves. They became really worried about Lucy and so they went to get advice from the Professor, in whose house they were living.
This is the same argument that C.S. Lewis makes in his book, Mere Christianity (Chapter 8) about how we are to understand Jesus:
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Jesus: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell.
You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman, or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool; you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
Jesus comes to us, telling us a crazy story, like the one that Lucy told Peter and Susan, a story about another reality. He comes healing the sick, and raising dead people back to life again. He comes forgiving sins and claiming to be God. Once we have heard this claim, we are left with these three choices: either Jesus was insane, a lunatic who somehow was able to be convince a lot of people in his day, and still does today, to lay down their lives for him; or much worse, he was a malicious liar who intentionally misled people. Or else, we have to accept his claims of divinity for what they are, and pay him the worship that is his due.
But what we can never do is say, “O, I believe is a great moral teacher.” That is absolute nonsense. No great moral teacher would claim to be God and accept the worship of his followers. That would be blasphemy, and then what kind of good teacher would that be? To lead his people astray about the very nature of God?
No, if Jesus is not a lunatic; if he is not a sadistic liar, some kind of megalomaniac; then he must be God. There are no other options left to us. My brothers and sisters, go into this summer-time prepared with this simple and straightforward line of discussion. When God or your Christian faith comes up in conversation, help those with whom you talk to see that to look at Jesus as a great moral teacher is a smoke-screen, a diversion tactic. To take that approach means that they are afraid to look at the truth.
It is possible to think clearly, rationaly, deliberately about Jesus Christ and come to a very sane decision about his divinity: he is God, along with Father and the Holy Spirit. And as such, he deserves our full homage and worship. That, my friends, is the truth.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Texts: 1 Kings 17:8-16; Psalm 146; Galatians 1:11-24; Luke 7:11-17
Title: A Revelation of Jesus Christ
Have any of you had a conversation about God with someone in the last few months? I mean, with someone who is not a member of your household. Have you had a conversation recently where God was brought up and in which you discussed matters of spiritual importance?
I had one of these conversations last Sunday afternoon, at a block party cookout on our street. Out of the blue, the grandmother of Fiona’s friend said to me: “Don’t you think the world would be a much better place if there weren’t any religions at all? Because it always seems that religion is in the middle of all the world’s problems.”
Obviously, I couldn’t leave that statement alone. I had to come back and say, No, in fact, I do not believe at all that religion is the problem in the world, but rather the pursuit of power and greed and prejudice and fear. People simply use religion for these ends, because religion is such a powerful force in human lives. And actually, I suggested, this suggestion is quite naïve. Human beings always have, and always will, worship something. The important thing is what we worship, and who we follow. It is crucial that we get this right, otherwise horrible consequences can follow.
So this got me thinking about what all of you might experience this summer. There’s a good chance that, at a cookout or a picnic, or at the shore, on vacation – that somewhere this summer, if you are open to it, you may have a good conversation with someone about God and about your faith.
I thought about this possibility while digging into today’s reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians. In this letter, Paul has to defend his preaching of the Gospel against new missionaries who have come from Jerusalem and who are attempting to persuade the Greek Galatian Christians that they need something more. What Paul taught is good, these missionaries said, but it is not enough. They also need to learn about the traditions of Judaism and, in fact, to become Jews. In this way, they can enter fully into the covenant.
This summer, as we travel and talk with different folks about life, we need to know the reason for the hope that is in us. We need to have a way to talk with people about who Jesus is, and why it is so important for us to trust in Him.
On the back of your bulletin, I have included two quotes from the writings of C.S. Lewis, the great Anglican apologist of the last century. These two sections both distill the same argument that he makes about the central reality of who Jesus is, though in different contexts.
You may remember the context of the story at the bottom, taken from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Chapter 5). It goes like this:
“Logic!” said the Professor half to himself. “Why don’t they teach logic at these schools? There are only three possibilities. Either your sister [Lucy] is telling lies, or she is mad, or she is telling the truth. You know she doesn’t tell lies and it is obvious that she is not mad. For the moment, and unless any further evidence turns up, we must assume that she is telling the truth. “
Susan looked at him very hard and was quite sure from the expression on his face that he was not making fun of them.
“But how could it be true, sir?” said Peter.
“Why do you say that?” asked the Professor.
“Well, for one thing,” said Peter, “if it was real, why doesn’t everyone find this country [of Narnia] every time they go to the wardrobe? I mean, there was nothing there when we looked; even Lucy didn’t pretend there was.”
“What has that to do with it?” said the Professor.
“Well, sir, if things are real, they’re there all the time.”
“Are they?” said the Professor; and Peter did not know quite what to say.
At this point, Peter and Susan, the older siblings, are at their wits end with Lucy’s story about Narnia, since they have not yet experienced it themselves. They became really worried about Lucy and so they went to get advice from the Professor, in whose house they were living.
This is the same argument that C.S. Lewis makes in his book, Mere Christianity (Chapter 8) about how we are to understand Jesus:
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Jesus: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell.
You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman, or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool; you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
Jesus comes to us, telling us a crazy story, like the one that Lucy told Peter and Susan, a story about another reality. He comes healing the sick, and raising dead people back to life again. He comes forgiving sins and claiming to be God. Once we have heard this claim, we are left with these three choices: either Jesus was insane, a lunatic who somehow was able to be convince a lot of people in his day, and still does today, to lay down their lives for him; or much worse, he was a malicious liar who intentionally misled people. Or else, we have to accept his claims of divinity for what they are, and pay him the worship that is his due.
But what we can never do is say, “O, I believe is a great moral teacher.” That is absolute nonsense. No great moral teacher would claim to be God and accept the worship of his followers. That would be blasphemy, and then what kind of good teacher would that be? To lead his people astray about the very nature of God?
No, if Jesus is not a lunatic; if he is not a sadistic liar, some kind of megalomaniac; then he must be God. There are no other options left to us. My brothers and sisters, go into this summer-time prepared with this simple and straightforward line of discussion. When God or your Christian faith comes up in conversation, help those with whom you talk to see that to look at Jesus as a great moral teacher is a smoke-screen, a diversion tactic. To take that approach means that they are afraid to look at the truth.
It is possible to think clearly, rationaly, deliberately about Jesus Christ and come to a very sane decision about his divinity: he is God, along with Father and the Holy Spirit. And as such, he deserves our full homage and worship. That, my friends, is the truth.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
A Proposal for the Future of Sunday School
Below is food for thought. An opinion piece from Episcopal News Service about options for Sunday Schools in urban areas. There may be some merit to this idea.
The Sunday School of the Future, Proposed
By Mary Jane Wilkie, June 01, 2010
[Episcopal News Service] In metropolitan areas, many Episcopal churches struggle with building and maintaining a healthy Sunday school. For such churches, resources are few, space is scarce, and parents are unclear about what they want for their children. Most churches lack a corps of competent teachers, and some congregations are too small to offer the "critical mass" needed to recruit such a corps.
I propose that, rather than wrestle with obstacles individually, churches could work collectively. Those in a specific geographic area could establish a center for children's spiritual development, to serve that area's churches on Sunday. Parents could leave their children at the center, and worship in the church of their choice, thus seeing to their own spiritual growth.
The collective Sunday school would offer as many as three hours of programming (as opposed to the skimpy 30-60 minutes available to children in most churches). It would include lessons, activities, and a children's chapel, which parents could attend with their children if they chose.
Potential benefits of this arrangement are:
• Children would have a stable place to grow spiritually.
• The space could be one that accommodates children (rather than whatever is carved out of the existing adult space in most churches).
• Parents could have a time to attend to their own spiritual growth.
• Children would enjoy greater diversity in their interaction with other children.
• The pooling of resources would enable staffing by trained (even paid) teachers.
• The facility would be open to neighborhood children, thus offering a service to the community.
The anticipated objections need not be fatal to the idea:
Parents and children could not worship together: Parents would be free to join their offspring in children's chapel, and they could retrieve their children at any time of the morning for worship elsewhere.
Location: To avoid the impression that it is the Sunday school of one particular church, the facility could even be a non-church, e.g., a school or a library. There is no small number of churches created from the merger of two struggling parishes. Perhaps one of the churches would be willing to "sacrifice itself" for the sake of the children's center. One could remain intact as the Sunday school, freeing the other for adult worship. Another option is the schools attached to some churches, which might serve as the ideal facility for such a center.
Program: The churches would need to agree on a curriculum, and I believe it would be beneficial for parents to consider what they want for their child’s spiritual growth. My own choice would be Godly Play, probably because I am a Godly Play teacher, and have seen its effectiveness. It is, I believe, the least controversial of those available, and resistance to Godly Play is usually attributable to the training and materials required (as opposed to the tenets of the program).
Expense: Participating churches, the diocese, and parents would need to support it. With sufficient numbers of children, however, the cost might not be as high as feared.
Variety of ages: With good healthy participation, there would be enough children for multiple classes. Many churches now have to accommodate a wide range of ages in one group, and do so with varying degrees of success.
In an ideal world, parents and their children would grow spiritually in one place, and most of us are attached to our specific church, cringing at the thought of not having it available for our children. We should, however, consider the long-term consequences of continuing as is. Discerning parents often tell me of their frustration finding an adequate Sunday school for their child, usually attributable to the churches' lack of space, time, and teachers. What I propose would address their need and see to our most precious resource -- the children.
-- -- Mary Jane Wilkie is a member of Church of the Holy Apostles in New York City. She is a trained Godly Play teacher, has taught Sunday school, and has been Sunday school director at two Episcopal churches in the Diocese of Newark.
The Sunday School of the Future, Proposed
By Mary Jane Wilkie, June 01, 2010
[Episcopal News Service] In metropolitan areas, many Episcopal churches struggle with building and maintaining a healthy Sunday school. For such churches, resources are few, space is scarce, and parents are unclear about what they want for their children. Most churches lack a corps of competent teachers, and some congregations are too small to offer the "critical mass" needed to recruit such a corps.
I propose that, rather than wrestle with obstacles individually, churches could work collectively. Those in a specific geographic area could establish a center for children's spiritual development, to serve that area's churches on Sunday. Parents could leave their children at the center, and worship in the church of their choice, thus seeing to their own spiritual growth.
The collective Sunday school would offer as many as three hours of programming (as opposed to the skimpy 30-60 minutes available to children in most churches). It would include lessons, activities, and a children's chapel, which parents could attend with their children if they chose.
Potential benefits of this arrangement are:
• Children would have a stable place to grow spiritually.
• The space could be one that accommodates children (rather than whatever is carved out of the existing adult space in most churches).
• Parents could have a time to attend to their own spiritual growth.
• Children would enjoy greater diversity in their interaction with other children.
• The pooling of resources would enable staffing by trained (even paid) teachers.
• The facility would be open to neighborhood children, thus offering a service to the community.
The anticipated objections need not be fatal to the idea:
Parents and children could not worship together: Parents would be free to join their offspring in children's chapel, and they could retrieve their children at any time of the morning for worship elsewhere.
Location: To avoid the impression that it is the Sunday school of one particular church, the facility could even be a non-church, e.g., a school or a library. There is no small number of churches created from the merger of two struggling parishes. Perhaps one of the churches would be willing to "sacrifice itself" for the sake of the children's center. One could remain intact as the Sunday school, freeing the other for adult worship. Another option is the schools attached to some churches, which might serve as the ideal facility for such a center.
Program: The churches would need to agree on a curriculum, and I believe it would be beneficial for parents to consider what they want for their child’s spiritual growth. My own choice would be Godly Play, probably because I am a Godly Play teacher, and have seen its effectiveness. It is, I believe, the least controversial of those available, and resistance to Godly Play is usually attributable to the training and materials required (as opposed to the tenets of the program).
Expense: Participating churches, the diocese, and parents would need to support it. With sufficient numbers of children, however, the cost might not be as high as feared.
Variety of ages: With good healthy participation, there would be enough children for multiple classes. Many churches now have to accommodate a wide range of ages in one group, and do so with varying degrees of success.
In an ideal world, parents and their children would grow spiritually in one place, and most of us are attached to our specific church, cringing at the thought of not having it available for our children. We should, however, consider the long-term consequences of continuing as is. Discerning parents often tell me of their frustration finding an adequate Sunday school for their child, usually attributable to the churches' lack of space, time, and teachers. What I propose would address their need and see to our most precious resource -- the children.
-- -- Mary Jane Wilkie is a member of Church of the Holy Apostles in New York City. She is a trained Godly Play teacher, has taught Sunday school, and has been Sunday school director at two Episcopal churches in the Diocese of Newark.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
The Paths of the Sea
Sermon for Trinity Sunday C RCL 5/30/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry
Texts: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15
Today, my friends, as you know is Trinity Sunday. What you may not know is that this feast was first formally established by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket, in 1162, as a day to celebrate the glorious mystery of the Holy Trinity. From England it then spread throughout the churches of the world.
But I will not speak with you today about the Trinity – at least not about this doctrine and how we understand it. There is something today that requires more immediate attention. Did you hear the words of the 8th Psalm which we prayed together?
“You [,Lord,] give [man] mastery over the works of your hands; you put all things under his feet: All sheep and oxen, even the wild beasts of the field, the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea.”
And whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea. As I meditated upon the lectionary texts this week, these words grabbed my heart, since so much of our collective awareness has been caught up in this horrible disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
But there is a connection, of course, between our understanding of the Trinity and our role within creation. All doctrine, everything we believe, is given to us as tools in order to shape and mold the way we think, and therefore, the way we live our everyday lives. This is as true of the complex doctrine of the Trinity as it is for any other. At its core, the truth of the Holy Trinity is all about community: all three divine Persons living together in complete equality and unity but with distinct tasks in the economy of creation and salvation.
When we speak of our role within God’s creation, we speak of another kind of community: the community of life of which we are a part but over which we have a distinct task as stewards and caretakers.
God, the Great Creator of all, has given all of this earth into our care, even the paths of the sea. How are we doing with our stewardship of the earth and the life of the sea? I don’t think this needs an answer, as we daily watch the greatest environmental disaster in our nation’s history. One that will cause the death of millions of creatures of the sea and birds of the air, as well as the devastation of the livelihoods of millions of American people.
When the Lord Jesus finished his earthly ministry, he told the apostles that there are many more things that he wished to teach them, but they were not yet ready to receive them. This is what he said: “When the Spirit of truth comes” – the Holy Spirit released into the world with power historically on the day of Pentecost– “he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13). It is clear now that our responsibility to care for the planet earth, our island home, is part of the truth into which the Holy Spirit has been guiding the Church.
As Christians, we value and protect life as inherently good. This, of course applies first to the protection of all human life, but the well-being of human beings cannot be separated from the well-being of the home in which we live. If the house is despoiled and dangerous and unhealthy, how will the inhabitants of the house survive in good health?
Let there be no doubt that God intends for us to care for the earth, the “till it and keep it”, as it states in the first chapter of Genesis. This has always been God’s calling for humanity.
Of course, others who do NOT understand God’s will for humanity – they may use our natural resources only for pleasure of profit, allowing greed to drive them. But we who know Jesus, who have committed our lives to live for the glory of God, we know better. We know that we cannot do that. We know that we cannot use the things of the earth for selfish gain.
For us Christians, the goal is always to live our lives free from selfish ambition. As St. Paul said so well: “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us” (Romans 5:5). That love will not allow us to sit back numb to the pain and suffering that our own sins and addictions cause to the community of life around us.
That love of Jesus Christ compels us to protect the living today. But our faith in Jesus also calls us to greater responsibility for the unborn generations to come. To till and to keep the earth means to use our gifts and resources to improve the conditions for human life here on earth, to leave things in better condition than how we found them.
There is great wisdom in the ancient rule from the Confederacy of the Haudenosaunee, commonly known as the Iroquois. In their Great Law created at least 600 years ago, the following principle is stated: “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decision upon the next seven generations.”
Friends, imagine how our world would be so radically different – and much, much better- if we put that principle into effect. Imagine if we all carefully considered the impact of deep-water oil drilling on the next seven generations of those who will follow us, before we ever allowed such drilling to begin. Unfortunately, we never do. Instead, the brazen market demand for profits, and our foolish obsession with oil, blind us to the destruction that our behavior causes to the community of life on this earth.
Our Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori has expressed this well when she wrote just a few days ago: “We are all connected, we will all suffer the consequences of this tragic disaster in the Gulf, and we must wake up and put a stop to the kind of robber baron behavior we supposedly regulated out of existence a hundred years ago. Our lives, and the liveliness of the entire planet, depend on it.” The Presiding Bishop: Lessons From The Gulf Oil Spill
Now, I know that it is right for us to pray for, and about, this disaster. But, to be frank, I’m not even sure even how to pray about this Gulf Oil spill. Do we pray that the damaging effects of this spill be miraculously eliminated? For the sake of the innocent animals and people who will suffer from this for years to come, I would like to. I really would. But we cannot pray for that. God does not work that way. No, we must suffer the consequences of our folly. For how else do we learn except through the experience of pain and loss?
If we ever are to become adept in our God-given task as stewards of the earth, if we ever are to accept our responsibility to improve the quality of life for those who will follow us, then we must repent for our sins, learn from our mistakes, and change our ways of thinking and acting to include the health of the entire planet as vital to our own well-being. This is God’s will for all humanity, and particularly for us who follow the teachings of the Son of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Texts: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15
Today, my friends, as you know is Trinity Sunday. What you may not know is that this feast was first formally established by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket, in 1162, as a day to celebrate the glorious mystery of the Holy Trinity. From England it then spread throughout the churches of the world.
But I will not speak with you today about the Trinity – at least not about this doctrine and how we understand it. There is something today that requires more immediate attention. Did you hear the words of the 8th Psalm which we prayed together?
“You [,Lord,] give [man] mastery over the works of your hands; you put all things under his feet: All sheep and oxen, even the wild beasts of the field, the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea.”
And whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea. As I meditated upon the lectionary texts this week, these words grabbed my heart, since so much of our collective awareness has been caught up in this horrible disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
But there is a connection, of course, between our understanding of the Trinity and our role within creation. All doctrine, everything we believe, is given to us as tools in order to shape and mold the way we think, and therefore, the way we live our everyday lives. This is as true of the complex doctrine of the Trinity as it is for any other. At its core, the truth of the Holy Trinity is all about community: all three divine Persons living together in complete equality and unity but with distinct tasks in the economy of creation and salvation.
When we speak of our role within God’s creation, we speak of another kind of community: the community of life of which we are a part but over which we have a distinct task as stewards and caretakers.
God, the Great Creator of all, has given all of this earth into our care, even the paths of the sea. How are we doing with our stewardship of the earth and the life of the sea? I don’t think this needs an answer, as we daily watch the greatest environmental disaster in our nation’s history. One that will cause the death of millions of creatures of the sea and birds of the air, as well as the devastation of the livelihoods of millions of American people.
When the Lord Jesus finished his earthly ministry, he told the apostles that there are many more things that he wished to teach them, but they were not yet ready to receive them. This is what he said: “When the Spirit of truth comes” – the Holy Spirit released into the world with power historically on the day of Pentecost– “he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13). It is clear now that our responsibility to care for the planet earth, our island home, is part of the truth into which the Holy Spirit has been guiding the Church.
As Christians, we value and protect life as inherently good. This, of course applies first to the protection of all human life, but the well-being of human beings cannot be separated from the well-being of the home in which we live. If the house is despoiled and dangerous and unhealthy, how will the inhabitants of the house survive in good health?
Let there be no doubt that God intends for us to care for the earth, the “till it and keep it”, as it states in the first chapter of Genesis. This has always been God’s calling for humanity.
Of course, others who do NOT understand God’s will for humanity – they may use our natural resources only for pleasure of profit, allowing greed to drive them. But we who know Jesus, who have committed our lives to live for the glory of God, we know better. We know that we cannot do that. We know that we cannot use the things of the earth for selfish gain.
For us Christians, the goal is always to live our lives free from selfish ambition. As St. Paul said so well: “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us” (Romans 5:5). That love will not allow us to sit back numb to the pain and suffering that our own sins and addictions cause to the community of life around us.
That love of Jesus Christ compels us to protect the living today. But our faith in Jesus also calls us to greater responsibility for the unborn generations to come. To till and to keep the earth means to use our gifts and resources to improve the conditions for human life here on earth, to leave things in better condition than how we found them.
There is great wisdom in the ancient rule from the Confederacy of the Haudenosaunee, commonly known as the Iroquois. In their Great Law created at least 600 years ago, the following principle is stated: “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decision upon the next seven generations.”
Friends, imagine how our world would be so radically different – and much, much better- if we put that principle into effect. Imagine if we all carefully considered the impact of deep-water oil drilling on the next seven generations of those who will follow us, before we ever allowed such drilling to begin. Unfortunately, we never do. Instead, the brazen market demand for profits, and our foolish obsession with oil, blind us to the destruction that our behavior causes to the community of life on this earth.
Our Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori has expressed this well when she wrote just a few days ago: “We are all connected, we will all suffer the consequences of this tragic disaster in the Gulf, and we must wake up and put a stop to the kind of robber baron behavior we supposedly regulated out of existence a hundred years ago. Our lives, and the liveliness of the entire planet, depend on it.” The Presiding Bishop: Lessons From The Gulf Oil Spill
Now, I know that it is right for us to pray for, and about, this disaster. But, to be frank, I’m not even sure even how to pray about this Gulf Oil spill. Do we pray that the damaging effects of this spill be miraculously eliminated? For the sake of the innocent animals and people who will suffer from this for years to come, I would like to. I really would. But we cannot pray for that. God does not work that way. No, we must suffer the consequences of our folly. For how else do we learn except through the experience of pain and loss?
If we ever are to become adept in our God-given task as stewards of the earth, if we ever are to accept our responsibility to improve the quality of life for those who will follow us, then we must repent for our sins, learn from our mistakes, and change our ways of thinking and acting to include the health of the entire planet as vital to our own well-being. This is God’s will for all humanity, and particularly for us who follow the teachings of the Son of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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