So Shall God Rejoice Over You

A Sermon for January 20, 2013 (Epiphany 2, RCL C)

Offered by Nathan Ferrell for The Church of Saint Mary

Texts:             Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 36:5-10; John 2:1-11

Primary Message:  God’s will is for loyalty, fidelity, holy love in every relationship

Call to Action:          Practice holy, Christ-like love in all relationships

Title:               So Shall God Rejoice Over You

“For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you;

and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).

My dear friends in Christ: each one of us is called to live faithfully as God’s covenant people.

The season of Epiphany has traditionally centered upon three stories in which the glory of our Lord Jesus was manifested in tangible ways:

-at his baptism in the river Jordan, at the transfiguration on Mount Tabor, and here, at a wedding reception in the small village of Cana.

Marriage is important in the Bible, as a way of ordering relationships and also as a metaphor for the relationship between God and the people of God.

And, as we all know, marriage is an important topic today within our society and within the church.

  

Let’s talk about marriage this morning, and let’s begin with a little research.

For most of you, I’ll bet that it’s been a number of years since you’ve been at an Episcopal wedding. So please pick up a Prayer Book. Share with your neighbor, if needed. Turn to Page 423 where we will find the liturgy called The Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage.

This liturgy begins with the traditional greeting which goes as follows:

Dearly beloved: We have come together in the presence of God to witness and bless the joining together of this man and this woman in Holy Matrimony.  The bond and covenant of marriage was established by God in creation, and our Lord Jesus Christ adorned this manner of life by his presence and first miracle at a wedding in Cana of Galilee.  It signifies to us the mystery of the union between Christ and his Church, and Holy Scripture commends it to be honored among all people.

Did you catch that part in the middle about the wedding at Cana? “Our Lord Jesus Christ adorned this manner of life by his presence and first miracle at a wedding.”

At a wedding, we gather together to witness and to bless a new covenant made in love.

But what does it mean to bless such a relationship? In fact, what is it that we do when we bless anything? What does that actually mean?

My soon-to-be brother priest, Kevin Kinsey, who serves the parishes in Aroostook County, told me just the other day that St. Luke’s parish in Caribou is getting a much-needed new furnace. And so the parish is planning to gather soon in order to bless that new furnace.

Well, what does that actually mean? I’ve heard of the blessing of firetrucks and motorcycles and boats. I myself have been asked to bless horses and dogs and rosaries and Bibles and houses. And, you may remember, that there are many times when we are called on, in fact, to bless God, especially in the Psalms. “Bless the Lord, O my soul” (Psalm 104:1)

What does it mean for us to bless something, or someone, or even God? What is this act of blessing?

The Church recently published a new theological resource which seeks to answer questions such as this, and to provide some framework in which to understand the blessing of a committed relationship. (I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing: Liturgical Resources 1) 

This book explains the Church’s act of blessing as a threefold-action in which we join in God’s work of blessing the world.

First, we acknowledge and give thanks for the grace of God which is already present.  You and I, the Church as a whole – we can never create God’s grace. We do not manufacture grace: we notice it, we acknowledge it, we recognize it, and we give thanks for it. The act of blessing never creates something which is not already there. 

A number of the early church fathers suggested that when Christ turned the water into wine, what he did was to recognize the grace already present in that gift of water, and to release it to attain its full potential!

So it is with us at all times. The grace of God always precedes anything that we do. The first aspect of blessing, then, is always thanksgiving and praise that God has been at work in this place, in these people, before we ever arrived.

The second movement of blessing is to ask. Jesus taught us very clearly that asking is at the core of a healthy heart and life. “Ask and it will be given to you” (Matthew 7:7). When we bless someone or something, we ask that this object or these persons might continue on as bearers and channels of God’s grace.

What do people ask for when they bless a new furnace? That the darn thing keeps on working, doing what it is supposed to do! What do we ask for when we bless the Lord? That God will continue to be God: pouring out goodness upon the world graciously and generously.

What do we ask for when we bless a couple uniting themselves to each other with vows of life-long faithfulness? That, through the agency of the other, each one might be enabled to attain their full potential, to be fully and completely who God has created them to be!  That together they may be more Christ-like than they ever could be alone.

The third aspect of blessing is the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to bear witness to Christ in the world. “Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (John 2:11). There is always an outward dimension to blessing. We receive a blessing ONLY in order that we might give a blessing to others. As disciples, we are called to bear the fruit of the Spirit. But fruit is created  to be eaten! It must be eaten in order to pass on the seed. This is how fruit is meant to work.

My friends, as we talk together about the marriage in the days to come, and we discuss the act of blessing people, I pray that we all remember what it means to bless something or someone. It is about recognizing the grace of God, asking for that grace to continue, and going out to bear the fruits of the Spirit.

Notice, please, that there are no pre-requisites to this act of blessing. 

Kevin Kinsey up in Caribou is not going to check on the type of furnace before he blesses it! I don’t only bless certain types of houses, or crosses made only of certain materials. When the priest offers the blessing from the Altar at the end of the Eucharist, it is offered to all: those who received communion, and those who chose not to do so; those who trust in Jesus Christ, and those who are not ready to do so; those with knowledge and understanding of Scripture and the ways of God, and those who are without.

When we bless a couple who are standing before God and the people of God in order to make vows of life-long faithfulness, the gender of those making such vows is irrelevant. First, we acknowledge that God has already given to these people an abundance of grace. The very fact that two people are willing to stand up and publicly make vows of mutual love and care until they are parted by death means that God has already moved in their lives with grace and power!

We recognize that, we acknowledge it as a miracle, and we ask for it to continue. 

In the year 2000, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church (General Convention website), passed a resolution which identified the following characteristics of what the Church has always, and will always, expect of couples in a committed, covenant relationship:

“fidelity, monogamy, mutual affection and respect, careful [and] honest communication, and the holy love that enables those in such relationships to see in each other the image of God” (Liturgical Resources 1: p.24).

A relationship that bears such godly fruit is worthy of our blessing. The challenge today for all of us here at Saint Mary’s, and in the Church as a whole, is not to defend our tradition of marriage, but to live it! To practice it! To make it a reality!

Not all of us are called to live within this kind of covenant. St. Paul famously declared his opinion that the single, celibate life is the best path in which we can serve God (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:32-35). Not all are called to live in a special covenant relationship, but we are all called to live faithfully as God’s covenant people. 

This is what matters: to love God and to love our neighbor, to trust in the free gift of grace through Jesus Christ, and to bear witness to that love in all of our thoughts, words and deeds. 

May it always be so among us here. Amen.

It's time to face the music!

It is time (perhaps way past time!) that we change the music that we use in worship. I think that all of us Episcopalians know this instinctively, but we do not relish the costs required in making this change. 

Here is a link to a thoughtful blog entry about music in our society today and in the church.   http://www.episcopalcafe.com/daily/music/recently_ive_participated_in_o.php 

But, to save you time, here is the most compelling summary paragraph offfered by George Clifford:

"Two hundred years ago, denominational hymnody functioned as a unifying and educational force that transcended parish lines. Today, the church faces a stark choice. We can persist in mandating the music that I love, congratulate ourselves on holding to tradition and consistency, and watch our numbers continue to decline. Alternatively, we can embrace present reality, accepting (even if begrudgingly!) that new styles of music speak to many twenty-first century people in a way that traditional music does not and that projection is replacing printed resources. I believe that the second alternative, done well (and of course we Episcopalians do everything well), is the only viable choice that encourages growth both in numbers and spiritual depth."

Let's stop waiting until we're too depleted to make this change effectively.

the value of personal holiness

Truro Church in Fairfax, Virginia was, until recently, one of the largest parishes in the Episcopal Church. (I was ordained a deacon there in Truro Church by Bishop Peter Lee of Virginia.) However, they left the Church over ethical differences. They believe that the practice of homosexual relationships is unethical behavior for Christians, while the Episcopal Church teaches that any relationship between adults can be holy if nurtured with love, fidelity, prayerful intention, and the blessing of the Christian community.

So what does it mean when one of the priests at Truro Church, who has struggled with internet pornography addiction for years, was just fired for using parish computers to surf the web for porn? See the article here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/07/AR2011010703063.html?hpid=dynamiclead

What is the value of preaching purportedly "high" ethical standards from the pulpit and then living by "low" ethical standards in your daily life? Which is more important? And what is the value in God's eyes of casting aspersions in public upon the holiness of others, while in secret one is violating one's own moral standards?

"Everything now covered up will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear" (Luke 12:2, NJB).

The Tender Compassion of our King

Sermon for the Feast of Christ the King (C RCL 11/21/2010), offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry

Texts: Jeremiah 23:1-6; Luke 1:68-79; Colossians 1:11-20; Luke 23:33-43

Today, my dear friends, is the last Sunday of the Church Year. It is called “Christ the King Sunday” and it is a time, here at the end of our annual cycle, for us to recognize the Lordship of Jesus Christ over all of human history. Even though we celebrate this truth at this time every year, you and I still have to wrestle with this question once again: What does it mean to have Jesus as our king? To have him as our monarch, the one who governs all things in our lives, because of our willing and voluntary assent to his authority?

Now, I have to confess that I have no idea at all what it is like to live under a King’s rule. Nor, frankly, do I have any wish whatsoever to experience this! Our little mountain cabin is located is New Hampshire and, God willing, we will be going up there for Thanksgiving. One of the things I love about that state is its motto. Do you know it?

NH State Motto
“Live free or die.” This motto comes from a toast made by a New Hampshire Revolutionary War hero named General John Stark. His toast for a reunion of revolutionary war veterans was this: “Live free or die; death is not the worst of evils.” That’s how I think. Don’t try to tell me what to do! I’m not good at submitting to authority, so the very idea of having an earthly king to rule over me honestly is quite repugnant.

But I do have a king. We have a king, though I don’t think this title does any justice to who he is and how he governs the world. Because this Christ, this Messiah, this King is unlike any governor or president or emperor that this world has ever known. Doesn’t it seem a bit odd that we read about the crucifixion on this feast of Christ the King? There is a deep mystery here. Let us pay attention to it. Our King shows his majesty from the cross. This King reveals his worthiness to rule when he suffers such embarrassment, such ignominy, such cruelness, such pain. Even on the cross, even in the face of such apparent weakness, he wields his great power – the power to heal and to transform.

During Holy Week, of course we read this very text from Luke and we sing of the glory of the cross. One of the ancient hymns that we sing is #161 in the Hymnal. The words were written by Venantius Fortunatus in the 6th century and paraphrased in the hymnal in this way:

The flaming banners of our King, advance through his self-offering. He lived to rob death of its sting; he died eternal life to bring.


A Roman soldier drew a spear to mix his blood with water clear. That blood retains its living power; the water cleanses to this hour.


The crowd would have been satisfied to see a prophet crucified. They stumbled on a mystery: Messiah reigning from a tree!


With what strange light the rough trunk shone, its purple limbs a royal throne, its load a royal treasury: the ransom of a world set free.


The best are shamed before that wood; the worst gain power to be good. O grant, most blessed Trinity, that all may share the victory.

The messiah reigning from a tree. When the repentant thief asks for mercy, when he pleads to be remembered kindly by Christ, the King replies with regal majesty: “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”

This past week, I and the members of St. Luke’s Church have dealt with an amazing wave of anger and bitterness from two neighbors there in Westville who object to the presence of homeless men in the Parish House. After listening to all of their threats and shouting, it seems that one of their primary arguments is that criminals cannot be trusted. That people who steal to support their bad habits will do so again. These neighbors have been robbed in the past and they are dreadfully afraid of this happening again. “You cannot change these people! You cannot trust these people!” they shouted in our face on Thursday night, at St. Luke’s Vestry meeting.

It’s funny how God works, because at the same time, while dealing with this conflict, I have been meditating on this reading from the Gospel of Luke. Jesus, the King, is on his throne of irony – the cross. And who is there present on his right and his left? Two criminals, two thieves. One proud and stubborn, bitter and angry. One remorseful and humble, sorrowful and honest.

Do you think that a criminal, a thief, can be changed? What does Jesus think? Which voice will you heed, the voice of hope and faith, or the voice of fear and despair?

The truth has spoken and the truth is this: no one is beyond the reach of God’s mercy and grace. The King does what he wills, and even if it bewilders those in the world who see only in black-in-white, this Messiah offers forgiveness and a chance to start again to all those who will come to him in confidence and trust.

It is not hard to do, except for the proud who are certain that they are better than “those people,” who believe that they are the good ones, who feel no need for help.

Dwight Moody (1837 – 1899) told the story of a young soldier in the Union army during the Civil War who was court-martialed and sentenced to be shot. This young fellow had voluntarily enlisted, and he agreed to go and serve the Union along with his best friend. They were close friends, and so, one night when his friend was ordered to go out and take the night watch, his friend asked him if he would be willing to serve in his place. He did this, but it just so happened that the very next night, he himself was ordered to take the night watch. And since he had now been awake for the second straight night, and since this young man was not yet used to it, he was found asleep at his post. President Abraham Lincoln had just issued an order that no interference would be allowed in cases of this kind, since this kind of lack of discipline had become all too common in the Army. Therefore, this young man was court-martialed and sentenced to face the firing squad.

When the news reached this man’s father and mother up in Vermont, they were devastated as this was their only son and he had recently enlisted with such enthusiasm. But they knew that there was nothing that could be done. The President had spoken. However, they also had a young daughter who had read the biography of President Lincoln. She knew how much he loved his own children. So she made up her determined little mind to do something. She told herself, “If Abraham Lincoln knew how my father and mother loved my brother, he would not let him be shot.” Somehow, she got herself down to the White House. And when the Guards saw this young girl’s determined yet imploring looks, they were unable to refuse her a visit with Mr. Lincoln. When she entered the room, she found the President there with his generals and counselors, and when he saw her, he asked what is was that she wanted. She told him the whole story: how much her parents loved their brother, how he had been sentenced to be shot, and how much they were mourning for him and how, if the execution took place, it would entirely break their hearts. Mr. Lincoln’s own heart was touched with compassion, and he immediately sent a dispatch cancelling the young man’s sentence and granting him a parole so that he could go home and visit his parents in Vermont.

The closest thing that we have to a King in our land is the President, the executive officer whose power is balanced by our other branches of government. Now consider this parallel: if Abraham Lincoln, a wise yet deeply flawed human being, was able to show such compassion for the sorrow of this one family, in violation of his own recent order, how much more mercy and grace and love can we expect from Christ the King, the compassionate, the merciful One? How much grace he gives to anyone who comes to him and asks for help! Even to criminals, to thieves. Even to people like you and me. This, my friends, is the only kind of King to whose authority I can gladly and joyfully submit. Amen.

Live for the Praise of His Glory

A Children's Sermon for All Saints’ Day 2010, offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry

Texts: Daniel 7:1-3,15-18; Psalm 149; Ephesians 1:11-23; Luke 6:20-31


To the children gathered together:
Let me ask you a question: what do you want to DO when you grow up?

OK, here’s a different question. Are you ready? Who do you want to BE when you grow up?

Do any of you want to be a saint when you grow up? No? I don’t blame you for that, but I do hope that you will change your mind.

Now I have still another question for you. Can you think of an important person? Who is it?

This past week, our nation held its annual Election Day. Did any of you hear about senators and representatives and governors who were elected to serve in government?

Do you think these are important people? Well, let me tell you a secret. Listen: the most famous President, the mightiest King and Emperor, the longest-serving Senator – none of these have any importance when compared to the smallest little saint in the kingdom of God!

This is the truth, and here is a true story. On Monday nights, I play basketball with a group of other adults in my town. We do there what a lot of you have probably done on the playground, at recess or after school. We pick 4 captains who then pick players for their team. We end up with 4 teams and we play on two courts.

But do you know what happens every Monday night when we pick teams? I’m the last one to be picked. The very last one! (That’s because I can’t shoot at all! I can run faster than nearly all of them, but I can’t shoot and they know that about me.)

I don’t mind. It’s very good to be humbled like that. God knows that I need it.

But for me, this is a parable for the saints of God. Out in the world, the saints are the ones who are always the last ones to be picked by others for their team. They don’t look like much on the outside. They are not the superstars, the celebrities, the famous ones, the mighty that people in the world follow and obsess over.

The saints are the hidden ones, the ones who never look for fame or recognition. The saints are not interested in power. They don’t want to be better or richer than others.

The saints are the ones who do what Jesus taught us. Did you hear today a bit of what he taught us? Did you hear any of the words of Jesus that I just read?

Love those who hate you and those who try to hurt you. Do good to them.
What did he say? If someone hits you, do not hit them back.
If someone takes your things, do not ask for them back again.
Do to other people the same as you want them to do to you.

Let me tell you a story about a true saint. We do not know his name. He lived a long time ago in the desert, in Egypt. He was what we call a monk, which means that he never married so that he could pray as much as he wanted. When this monk was an old man, a group of strong, young thieves came to his room and told him, “We have come to take away everything that is in your cell.” The old man replied, “My sons, take all that you want.” So they took everything that they could find and they left. But after they left, the old monk noticed a little bag in the corner behind a chair which the robbers didn’t see.

So do you know what he did? He took that little bag and ran after the thieves and told them, “My sons, stop! Take this! You forgot it in my room.” And then he went back to his empty room so that he could pray.

But the thieves were amazed. So do you know what they did? They were convicted in their heart! They brought all of the old man’s things back to him, and they knelt down before him and asked to be forgiven, because they said, “This one really is a man of God!” And they were right! He is one of the countless number of saints who we celebrate today. (The Wisdom of the Desert, P.59).

Now let me ask you: who, in this story, was actually stronger, more courageous, braver? The robbers or the old man?

That's right. The old man! It is easy, isn't it, to grab and rob and steal. It is much harder to give away your belongings. You have to be brave and strong to do that.
When you grow up, you will do lots of different things in your work, in your lives. And as you do these things, you can BE a saint of God. You can be one who does what Jesus teaches us, who loves everyone, no matter what. I hope and pray that God will give you that desire.

Please close your eyes and let us pray:

Dear God, please help us to listen to Jesus and to do what he teaches us. Thank you for all of your saints who also teach us how to live a good life, how to be strong and brave and courageous. Help us to be like them, to love everyone in the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

FOR THE BAPTISM
Let me say a few words also in consideration of the baptism which brings many of you here today. Sean and Laura: do you realize what you are doing? It is a dangerous thing that you are doing today! It’s not safe to entrust your newborn child to the care of this Jesus, this revolutionary Messiah who will lead Tyler down a path of humility and self-sacrificial love. It costs us a lot to love our enemies and never to retaliate, never to get revenge. It costs a lot to give and not to grab.

To be baptized into the body of Christ is to be brought into a family full of people from all over the world, from every language and color and class, who are all a little bit crazy because we are learning from this Jesus how to live a life very different from the world around us. We don’t usually do a good job of this, but we are learning, and we are growing in grace and wisdom.

In just a few minutes, you parents and godparents will stand here and will promise to be part of this revolutionary, learning, serving, worshiping community, and to do everything in your power to guide Tyler into this way of life. It’s a little dangerous, but it’s a good thing that you do today. Because this way of life is the path to a life of joy and peace beyond anything else that this world can offer. And that is why we are here. Amen.

Where God's Mouth Is

Sermon for Proper 20 C RCL 9/19/2010


Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry


Texts: Jeremiah 8:18-9:1; Psalm 79:1-9; 1 Timothy 2:1-7; Luke 16:1-13



We began with a fun dramatic script from the Iona Community in Scotland called, “Of mouths and money.” It imagined an "off the record" (meaning, not recorded in Scripture!) dialogue between Jesus and Peter about which subject the Lord spoke about the most. Peter wonders if Jesus is obsessed with money, since he speaks about it so often. Jesus contends that many people have "a money problem" that keeps them separated from God and from one another. You can find this dialogue (and many others directrly related to the Gospels) in this book here on Amazon.com:
Jesus and Peter: Off-the-record Conversations




Yes, my sisters and brothers: Jesus talks a lot about money! He talks more about wealth and money than perhaps any other single subject matter.


Now, this can be difficult for us to hear. Very often, I hear people complain that all they ever hear the church talk about is money. But I don’t think this is the same as the way Jesus talked about money. Jesus wasn’t concerned with fundraising or with budgets or pledges or anything like that.


Always, Jesus is focused laser-like on the disposition of the human heart and how this guides all of our actions.


All of his teachings on money reach their climax in the final saying from our reading today:


“You cannot serve God and wealth” (Luke 16:13). His point is this: here are two different paths that we can follow. The path of pursuing money or the path of pursuing God. It is a matter of eagerness and energy, of devotion and commitment.


This teaching is so crucially important for us, because we here in our nation are so easily distracted and blinded by the plethora of goods around us. This past week, our high school son, Angus, and I got into a little argument about the relative importance of technology. He reported to me that our upper elementary school just received a gift of 25 new I-Pads so that students can learn to use this new technology. I replied and said, “Angus, that’s stupid! How are I-Pads going to help 5th graders with their math and creative writing?” Of course, he responded that he felt it is important for kids to learn about new technology.


But is that really important? Is this the technology that matters, I told him? When thousands of children die every day because they do not have clean water to drink, is it really important for us here to learn how to use the newest touch screen computers? Is that what our children need to learn? For that matter, do we really need have to have the best flat screen TVs and the newest and fanciest gadgets when there are 1 billion people in the world today who suffer from chronic hunger?


I know that many of these folks are hungry because of their own dysfunctional governments. I know that. But still, we have to be careful not to excuse ourselves too easily. You and I have an extra responsibility to turn away from the sea of advertisements in which we swim every day, to not be fooled by these siren voices calling us to buy more and more.


What did we hear today from our Epistle reading? That God “desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). Last week, we talked about what it means to be saved. That to be saved is to be released from the baggage of our past, the bonds of ignorance and foolishness and selfishness and greed which we have picked up over the years, in order that we might be healed and recover our true, natural selves.


This process of healing includes coming to the knowledge of the truth, and surely this knowledge includes an awareness that God calls us to lives of deep generosity and compassion. That kind of life is impossible as long as we continue to listen to the voices of greed and possession rather than the voice of God.


So may the Holy Spirit grant us grace to be among those who put our money where God’s mouth is as we live with the compassion of Jesus Christ. Amen.

And With All Your Mind!

Sermon for Proper 11C RCL 7-18-2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry

Texts: Amos 8:1-12; Psalm 52; Colossians 1:15-28; Luke 10:38-42

Today we are given this great story from the Gospel of Luke to ponder. Mary and Martha are presented to us as two different models of discipleship, two divergent paths by which we faithfully love and serve the Lord. Of course, Mary is the exalted one, the one highlighted as choosing the better path. But wisdom demands that we never forget the importance of labor and work which Martha represents.

Back in the 4th century, a certain man came to a monastery in the desert at Mount Sinai and he saw a busy community full of activity. He spoke to the abbot there and said, “Why do you all work for the bread that perishes? Mary has chosen the best part, namely to sit at the feet of the Lord without working!”

So the abbot called to one of his monks and said, “Give this brother a book and let him read, and put him up in an empty cell.”

By the time the ninth hour arrived (3 o’clock in the afternoon), the visitor who was reading began to look outside to see if the abbot would call him to dinner. After a while longer, he went out to find the abbot and asked him. “Did the brethren not eat today, father?”

“Oh yes, certainly,” replied the abbot. “They just had dinner.” “Well, then, why didn’t you call me?”

“You, of course, are a spiritual man,” said the abbot. “You don’t need this food which perishes. We have to work, but you have chosen the best part. You read all day, and can get along without food!”

The visitor was humbled and replied, “Forgive me, father.”

And the wise abbot replied, “Martha is necessary to Mary, for it was because Martha worked that Mary was able to be praised!” (from The Wisdom of the Desert by Thomas Merton, p. 36).

Another time among the Desert Fathers and Mothers in the 4th century, it was told that the famous Abbot called John the Dwarf once called his elder brother and told him, “I want to live in the same security as the angels have, doing no work, but serving God without intermission.” And so he stripped off all his clothes, left everything behind and walked out into the desert, unattached and free.

After only one week, John the Dwarf returned to his brother and knocked on his door. Before opening, the brother called out, “Who are you?” The reply came, “I am John.”

Then the brother answered, “John has become an angel and is no longer among men.” But John the Dwarf kept knocking and pleading to be let in. For a long time, the brother did not open the door, until finally he did so. But before he let John inside, he said to him, “If you are a man, you are going to have to start working again in order to live. But if you are an angel, why do you want to come inside?”

So John the Dwarf did penance and said, “Forgive me, brother, for I have sinned" (Ibid, p.41)

These fun, little stories from the ancient desert reflect the wisdom of the church that will not allow us to adopt an extreme position which negates the importance of either sister. Poor Martha! Her stature is humbled in this story, but we all know that her efforts are absolutely necessary after all.

So what then is the Gospel telling us through this story? We have to see this famous story of Martha and Mary as the other side of the coin along with the story of the Good Samaritan. These two are purposefully put together by Luke to give concrete expression to the summary of the law from earlier in Chapter 10: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27).

In the Good Samaritan, we see the love of neighbor; in Mary and Martha, we see the love of God.

Both of these also fulfill the vision of Jesus from earlier in Luke when he said, “My mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it” (Luke 8:21).

For Mary hears the word of God. It is Martha and the Samaritan who do it!

The apostle Paul stated that faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). To love the Lord our God with all our mind means that we hear Christ speak and then we have to think. God wants us to think carefully about how we live. Our task as disciples is, like Mary, to sit at the feet of the Lord, to listen carefully to his teaching, and to do our best to put this teaching into practice in our daily actions.

My friends, it’s not the easy way to live, but you and I are called to be diligent in thinking. We are promised that it is in fact the way to an abundant and full life.

For instance, my conscience will not allow me to use a gas-powered mower for our lawn. Now, I am not so vain as to stand here and say to you that Jesus told me not to do this! That would be ridiculous! But this conviction has come about as a result of thinking carefully in light of the Gospels.

Let me ask you: is it right that my vanity to have a perfectly manicured lawn, and my desire to avoid physical extertion, is a good cause for us to invade other nations to secure a good oil supply for the future? Or to drill holes in the bottom of the ocean? Because of our inability to control ourselves, we place so much of the world at great risk – both the natural world and human society! I know that we need oil for our society to function. I’m not that naïve. But the truth is that I DON’T need it for my lawn!

Jesus teaches me to weigh these two factors: concern about what my neighbors might say about my imperfect lawn (since our old-fashioned reel mower doesn’t provide as close of a cut) or the health of the world and the peace of human society. It may be easier to use a gas mower, and it may provide better results, but does that mean that it is the best option?

Truth be told, it is difficult at times to live as a Christian, to think with such vigilance about our actions. Last week, I had an appointment to have my teeth cleaned by my dentist. And during the cleaning, the hygienist asked me, “Do you use an electric toothbrush?” Of course, I couldn’t answer, with four of her fingers and a suction tube shoved in my mouth! But I shook my head no and she suggested that it really would be a good idea.

I didn’t give her my explanation when I finally had free use of my mouth again, but the truth is that we cannot do that! If all 6.85 billion people in the world used electric toothbrushes, then we would need to build more power plants just to power all of these brushes! (I actually researched this, and it would take approximately 22 Gigawatts of energy per year to power all of these toobrushes!)

No. We need to be smarter than that. When nearly one billion people today do not have access to reliable electricity at all, for me, this would be the selfish misuse of resources!

The point is this, my brothers and sisters: when we listen to what Jesus’ teaches, when we think about our lives in light of his teaching, we learn that self-interest can never be the primary measure for any of our decisions. To love my neighbor as myself means that I am willing, and able, to lay aside my own desires in order to consider the needs of others, whoever they might be. To love God with all my mind means that I am willing, and able, to consider carefully the effects of my actions upon others, whoever they might be.

So may God give us all grace to listen like Mary to the word of Christ, then to bring the practical wisdom of Martha, and the compassion of the Good Samaritan, to bear upon our decisions, so that we may think and to act as those who hear the Word of God and do it - as disciples of Christ in this world. Amen.

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.

What GOD has made clean

Sermon for 5 Pascha C RCL 5/2/2010, Offered by Nathan Ferrell for Trinity Episcopal Shared Ministry

Texts: Acts 11:1-18; Psalm 148; Revelation 21:1-6; John 13:31-35


All of you who have heard me preach before know that I stay far away from controversial issues of the political realm. There are a number of reasons for that. First of all, I frankly do not think it is the job of the church to get involved in politics. We have our hands full simply with the task of transforming ourselves and our families and our own local communities.

A wise saint was gave this advice: “Do not be angry when you cannot make others do what you want them to do. Because you cannot even make yourself do what you want to do!” So it is in the church. There is no point in legislating how others need to behave when we can barely even manage ourselves to live in accordance with the teachings of Christ.

Secondly, I do not think it is fair to subject all of you to my personal opinions and perspectives. Each one of us has our own opinions on certain matters, and talk on these matters tends only to be divisive. Therefore, it seems more appropriate to stick to the central matters of faith which the entire church holds in common, and around which we can be united in Christ.

Lastly, I am one of those odd types of people who are blessed (well, blessed or cursed, I’m not so sure!) to be able to see both sides of an issue with some degree of clarity. On most controversial matters of national debate which cause such heated rhetoric in the media, I honestly have a difficult time coming down on one side or the other. Both sides have some merit. That’s why there is a debate, after all! I personally find it to be the height of arrogance to assume that one’s side is of course in the right, while one’s opponents are obviously in the wrong (or in the left, depending on where you stand!).

However . . . . with all that being said, TODAY I feel compelled to wade into the troubled waters that surround the Church now like an angry sea in a tempest. As we all know, the troubles have arisen from our various ways of understanding human sexuality and its meaning and place within the kingdom of God.

The story of Peter, as we read it today in the Acts of the Apostles, seems to be such a clear parallel to our current predicament that the Holy Spirit would not allow me to leave this alone.

What Peter experienced, and what he participated in, there in Caesarea was mind-blowing, earth-shattering, revolutionary in every sense. We must recall that all of the first disciples were faithful Jews, loyal to their people and to their covenant with God. In their worldview, the covenant of God was with the descendants of Jacob only, and their new church was a means of reviving and restoring the Jewish people in their unique relationship with God.

But now, everything had changed. And it was God’s fault! Peter reported: “The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us.”

How could God, the Holy Spirit, tell Peter to do this? It was blasphemy!

Just imagine the struggles of these circumcised disciples who criticized Peter. For 1600 years, male circumcision had been a defining mark of the people’s unique covenant with God. Now, the actions of Peter seemed to suggest that this circumcision was all for nothing, that it was an unnecessary and useless action. If God was to send the Holy Spirit onto the uncircumcised as well as the circumcised, then what is the point of this distinguishing mark?

It is the same in these matters of orientation. For those of us who are straight, if we are honest with one another, it can be quite difficult to consider different orientations and the implications of these differences. I am convinced that a vast majority of the general conservatism in the Anglican world in this matter is a direct result of the difficulty of overcoming this inherent aversion. The majority of the resistance is not theological; it is gut-level response that has nothing at all to do with scripture. Surely, the bishops and priests who criticize the Episcopal Church today can articulate their stance in biblical and theological terms, but very few of the people in their pews can do so. They oppose the new developments in the Episcopal Church because they “know” they are wrong. They feel it in the inside. These changes are so foreign to their experience.

And now they hear the Episcopal Church saying: “What God has made clean, you must not call profane” (Acts 11:9). Or more appropriately: Those whom God has made clean in the waters of baptism, those who are fed faithfully at the Lord’s Table, those who truly love the Lord Jesus and seek to follow him, you have no right to exclude them from the full life of the Church. “What God has made clean, you have no right to call profane” (Acts 11:9).

The incredible vision that is given to us in the Book of Revelation points us clearly to the fact that God is calling us, pulling us forward, into a new future. The Church exists today as a vanguard, a forward operating post, of this new heaven and new earth that God is bringing into being. What we do in the Church is pull a bit of that glorious future into the present darkness of this world.

In this way, the Church is a bit like football practice, if you will allow the coarse analogy. The real game is coming up, and we’ve already been given the gameplan by our coach. Now we need to get everyone together to practice together on a regular basis, so that we will all learn how to work together in unison, to fulfill the coach’s vision, to be ready for action. And in that real game to come, in that new heavens and new earth, I feel pretty certain that none of these things that we are fighting about now are going to matter at all. There’s not even in the coach’s gameplan! Can any of us even imagine if sexual orientation will be part of this new heavens and new earth?

I make no claim at all to understand these matters fully, to comprehend these matters of sexual orientation among human beings and how they formed and develop within us. But I am convinced of this, just as Peter was convinced there in Caesarea: “If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?”

And I am convinced that we in The Episcopal Church stand on the right side of history, that are following the coach’s gameplan. That when all is said and done, the judgment of Jesus Christ will prevail, for he is the one who said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.”

He did not say, “I give you a new commandment, that you maintain purity to the Law of Moses within the church.” He did not say that “everyone will know that you are my disciples if you maintain the ethical standards of ancient Roman society.”

What did he say? What is his standard? What is his gameplan? “Love one another.”

There is an old story about St. John the Evangelist, that as an old man in Ephesus he would preside whenever the church gathered for the Eucharist. And every week, it is said that John stood before the people to preach and, week after week, he stood, paused, looked over the gathered community and said, “My brothers, let us love one another.” Over time, the people became confused and they asked him why he never moved on to another topic in his preaching, perhaps on to something more interesting or inspiring. And the holy apostle replied and said, “Because, my friends, as soon as you master this lesson, then we will all be ready to move on to another one.”

I’m afraid that we Christians still have not mastered this most basic lesson of St. John. Perhaps we never will. But I’m not a quitter. What about you? What do you say? I say let’s keep practicing together, focused upon learning from the Lord Jesus Christ, not how to judge one another, not how to create walls of separation, but how to love one another in the way that leads to everlasting life. Now that’s a good gameplan. Amen.

Bishop Barbie and Evangelism

http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2010/04/11/faith-matters-will-barbie-save-the-episcopal-church/

If you have the time to read  a very thought provoking post on the future of the Episcopal Church, click on this link above and read away. While I do not agree with every point (his conclusions are overly simplistic, ignoring other major factors that are changing American society as a whole), his passion and concern are evident, and his general critique of mismanagement is correct. As a priest working "on the inside", I have been amazed at how the Church tolerates incompetence so easily. Our previous generation of leaders has indeed let us down, choosing the path of comfort and ease to our divinely-appointed prophetic vocation. Lord, have mercy.