Seventh Sunday of Easter: One Among Many

Today's Scripture Readings

Acts 16:16-35 (NRSV)

With Paul and Silas, we came to Philippi in Macedonia, a Roman colony, and, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, "These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation." She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out that very hour.

But when her owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities. When they had brought them before the magistrates, they said, "These men are disturbing our city; they are Jews and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or observe." The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates had them stripped of their clothing and ordered them to be beaten with rods. After they had given them a severe flogging, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to keep them securely. Following these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was an earthquake, so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were unfastened. When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted in a loud voice, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here." The jailer called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them outside and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. At the same hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his entire family were baptized without delay. He brought them up into the house and set food before them; and he and his entire household rejoiced that he had become a believer in God.

Psalm 97 (BCP., p.726)


Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21 (NRSV)

At the end of the visions I, John, heard these words:

"See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone's work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.

"It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star."

The Spirit and the bride say, "Come."
And let everyone who hears say, "Come."
And let everyone who is thirsty come.
Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.

The one who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming soon."

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen.

 

John 17:20-26 (NRSV)

Jesus prayed for his disciples, and then he said. "I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

"Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."

Blog Reflection

Are you confused at all by this Gospel reading from John is the one being used this Sunday? It is a bit strange.  We spent the last six or seven weeks focusing on the Risen Christ.  We had three Sundays with readings about the Risen Jesus with His Disciples.  After, we had two Sundays during which we heard Jesus speak about being the Good Shepherd, followed by Jesus telling us to love one another as He loves us.  Thursday was Ascension Day.  Jesus left the Disciples to be at the right hand of God.  Now, we are back to Jesus' discourse during the Last Supper.  What might this Gospel reading be telling us?   We are awaiting the Day of Pentecost on which we will celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit upon Christians to be Christ's witnesses all over the world.

We have another challenging matter with this Gospel reading.  Jesus' prayers are for Christians to be one as He and the Father are one.  This prayer is very curious.  Each of the Disciples came from very different places and had different occupations.  There were Fishers from one town.  Others were perhaps farmers or servants.  It is suggested that Judas Iscariot was a scholar.   I am sure each of them had a different approach to their faith, and experiences of the Resurrection.  Thomas after all, wanted to see the evidence of the Risen Christ.   Others had an experience of Jesus walking with them on the road to Emmaus.   I tend to believe that there were women present for this conversation, each who knew Jesus from their own perspective.

There are traditions within Christianity that would suggest that Jesus was talking about the Church being one with no denominations to support different beliefs and practices for various countries, languages and cultures.  Others would suggest that oneness is for all Christians to be opposed to abortion, birth control, equality for women, LGBTQ, marriage equality, etc.  Notice that no where in this Gospel text does Jesus make conditions about what this oneness means.  What Jesus is praying about is that Christians will be one as He and His Father are one, so that every person in the world knows that they are loved without distinction.

While many Christians are waging political and social debates about transgender people using the "proper" public restroom, or declaring every Muslim not able to enjoy their religious freedoms, or supporting racism, sexism; the ministry of healing and reconciliation on the part of Christians being one is being made a scam.  Jesus did not make a condition on what oneness would mean.  Christians on the other hand, have been for centuries deciding what divides us from seeking the common good and respecting the dignity of every human person.  This prayer of Jesus is that we will be one in loving others who are different from ourselves, and welcoming them to be part of the Body of Christ with no distinction.

How will you answer Jesus' prayer to be one among many Christians?

Amen.

Prayers

O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son
Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to
strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior
Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.226).

Almighty Father, whose blessed Son before his passion prayed
for his disciples that they might be one, as you and he are one:
Grant that your Church, being bound together in love and
obedience to you, may be united in one body by the one Spirit,
that the world may believe in him whom you have sent, your
Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in
the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.255).

Sixth Sunday of Easter: The Love and Peace of The Risen Christ

Today's Scripture Readings

Acts 16: 9-15 (NRSV)

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home." And she prevailed upon us.

Psalm 67 (BCP, p.675)


Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5 (NRSV)

In the spirit the angel carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day-- and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

John 14:23-29 (NRSV)

Jesus said to Judas (not Iscariot), "Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.

"I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, `I am going away, and I am coming to you.' If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe."

Blog Reflection

I think all of us can pray Psalm 67 with some sincere pleading.  We need God to bless us with saving health for all nations.  The election campaigns, the anti-transgender bathroom bills, the racism, the experiences of those who rely on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid hearing politicians and business executives wanting to privatize them; tell us a lot about what is a priority these days.

Jesus is telling us to not let our hearts be troubled.  He also tells us to love Him and keep His word so that God can make a home in us.  Jesus promises the Holy Spirit who will remind us of what Jesus told us, and He offers us peace to be left with us.  So many tidbits, but a lot to meditate on.

Philip Heinze in Living the Lectionary wrote,

the peace that precedes the “do not let…” is not put on a happy face and the whole world smiles with you because the sun will come up tomorrow bet your bottom dollar solution to real life strife. In the same way, “believe in me” does not mean just get over it. Nor does it minimize trouble because it could be worse even if it clearly could be. That would be worldly peace. The peace of the world is temporary and illusionary as it denies sorrow, medicates pain with costly pleasure, or seeks solace by seeing to it that other hearts are equally troubled. The peace that Jesus gives embraces suffering and dies to destroy the power of death. Called to cling to the cross by which Jesus overcomes the world, and all the trouble in it, the people of Jesus’ peace believe that trouble is temporary while peace is eternal. 

It is difficult not to notice that at the very top of the Medal of Saint Benedict is the word Pax.  In case I have readers who have never read or heard that word, it is Latin for peace.  At the entrances of many Benedictine Monasteries in Europe are the words "Pax intrantibus", meaning "Peace be with all who enter here."  It is the same peace that Jesus offers.  A peace that embraces us in any and all situations of our lives, and draws us closer to God and each other.  It is that "peace which is beyond all understanding" that we can only lose if we give it over to something or someone willingly that brings us temporary pleasure in our false-sense of self; but deprives us of the Holy Spirit who longs to united us with our true selves.

Keeping the word of Jesus is not limited to Jesus alone.  It is the love of God that is not limited to human labels, our brokenness we inflict on each other and ourselves.  It is a love and a peace that invite us to listen to what Jesus is saying to us as we receive Him in the guest, and allow the Holy Spirit to bring us healing and reconciliation with those who are different from ourselves.    

I am having a very difficult year with many losses.  More than I can write about in greater detail.  I am experiencing emotions that are all over the place.  My Asperger's and many of my other personal challenges can make things pretty intense.  In the middle of all this, God has placed in my life two amazing individuals who understand me, and are helping me to just feel everything with no judgments or expectations.  They are loving me as I am, and making room for me be very kind and gentle with myself and provide a safe place for me in my grief.  They are determined to help me love God as others love me with that same love, and to search for peace at a time when it can be very difficult to feel let alone find.

I believe that what I have just described above is a great example of the love and peace the Risen Christ gives us through our Advocate, the Holy Spirit.  It is the love and peace we share with each other when life is cruel and harsh on ourselves and others beyond us.  Our Baptismal Vows call us to strive for this peace with justice and to uphold the dignity of every human person; regardless of who they are or what condition their lives are in.  In so doing God makes a home with us, and our home is made with God in this life and in the life to come.

Amen.


Prayers

O God, you have prepared for those who love you such good
things as surpass our understanding: Pour into our hearts such
love towards you, that we, loving you in all things and above
all things, may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we
can desire; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p. 225).

Most holy God, the source of all good desires, all right
judgements, and all just works: Give to us, your servants, that
peace which the world cannot give, so that our minds may be
fixed on the doing of your will, and that we, being delivered
from the fear of all enemies, may live in peace and quietness;
through the mercies of Christ Jesus our Savior. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p. 123).

  

 

Fifth Sunday of Easter: The Kainos Commandment

Today's Scripture Readings

Acts 11:1-18 (NRSV)

Now the apostles and the believers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him, saying, "Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?" Then Peter began to explain it to them, step by step, saying, "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven, being lowered by its four corners; and it came close to me. As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals, beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air. I also heard a voice saying to me, `Get up, Peter; kill and eat.' But I replied, `By no means, Lord; for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.' But a second time the voice answered from heaven, `What God has made clean, you must not call profane.' This happened three times; then everything was pulled up again to heaven. At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man's house. He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, `Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter; he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.' And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, `John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' 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?" When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life."

Psalm 148 (BCP, p.805).


Revelation  21:1-6 (NRSV)

I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

"See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them as their God;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away."

And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true." Then he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life."

John 13:31-35 (NRSV)

At the last supper, when Judas had gone out, Jesus said, "Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, 'Where I am going, you cannot come.' I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

Blog Reflection

I have recently begun to read Walking In Valleys of Darkness: A Benedictine Journey Through Troubled Times, by Fr. Albert Holtz, OSB.  In the book, Holtz writes about two Greek words for the English word new.  One word is neos.  This word refers to "recent, young."  The other Greek word for new is kainos which means "unheard of, unknown."

The "new" commandment referred to in Saint John's Gospel today is the word kainos, not the word neos.  It is suggested that it is a commandment that is unheard of or unknown.  If that is the case, what should be the response of Christians to this kainos commandment?

All of our readings today speak to us of what is new or kainos.  That which is unknown is becoming clearer as the kainos Jerusalem comes down out of heaven in the Book of Revelation.  All things such as the tears we cry, the pain we feel and what we know will be changed into the kainos Kingdom.  While we do not read the word new or kainos in Peter's experience in the Acts of the Apostles, it is quite clear that Peter had a kainos experience on that roof top.  It changed his outlook to the people God was calling him to go to.

If there is one thing that we all find difficult to cope with is change.  We all say we want a kainos Church and society in which injustice and oppression are no longer the status quo.  However, when faced with the minute kainos changes towards making that happen, even the most open minded of persons can become quite reluctant.

I once had a conversation with a very progressive minded individual about the issue of housing for minorities.  The subject was about how the individuals and families of certain races are often left with the worst choices in terms of housing with no one to assist them with knowing their rights.  When the occasion comes to talking with their landlords to take care of maintenance requests and pest control, their requests seem to fall on deaf ears.  As the conversation continued, the person I was talking with said, "Whenever you have Latinos or Hispanics living in apartment buildings, there will always be that kind of problem."

The debate over equal protections for LGBT people, in particular transgender people and what gender uses what bathroom has really been getting more intense.  These issues are the result of people not being open to kainos understandings of gender roles and what they mean.  Yet, the problem of "classes" of people being denied basic human rights protection is not so kainos.  It happened in Nazi Germany and in the United States of America during the Civil Rights movement influenced by individuals such as Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Jesus tells His disciples and us today that He is giving us a new (kainos) commandment.  That we are to love one another as He has loved us.  The love that Jesus speaks of sees past gender, race, class, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, religion and every label we can come up with; to love the human person totally and completely without distinction.  The kainos commandment is the love of God for all humankind by which Jesus gave His life for all of us on the Cross and rose from the dead.  He is calling each of us to break kainos ground and to see beyond what is on the surface, to live into our Baptismal Vows of respecting the dignity of every human being; to love with the same love.  This is why our Book of Common Prayer, invites us to answer the questions in our Baptismal Covenant with "We will, with God's help."  Jesus invites us to face our human limitations honestly and be open to the Holy Spirit leading us into the kainos way in which Jesus showed us of loving others as God loves all of us.

In the Incarnate Word, God showed humankind that all of us can be loved, and all of us can love if we only put our faith and trust in God's love in the Person of Jesus Christ.  God knows what we are capable of when we love openly and totally, looking towards Jesus as that "way, truth and life" by which God brings healing and reconciliation to our broken and wounded world.  When we are open to receiving and sharing that love, we show forth the Risen Jesus who says "Peace be with you" even to those who have abandoned Him at his most desperate of moments.  The Risen Christ welcomes the stranger, gives sight to the blind and gives a voice to those who are unable to speak for themselves.  We are empowered to live into Saint Benedict's admonition to "receive all guests as Christ Himself." (The Rule of Saint Benedict, Chapter 53).

I think it is past time for Christians to make the kainos commandment of Jesus to love others as He has loved us better known than to leave it as unknown.   What do you think?

How is God calling you to live into the kainos commandment to love others as Jesus has loved you?

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life: Grant
us so perfectly to know your Son Jesus Christ to be the way,
the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow his
steps in the way that leads to eternal life; through Jesus Christ
your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity
of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.225).


O God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior,
the Prince of Peace: Give us grace seriously to lay to heart the
great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions; take away
all hatred and prejudice, and whatever else may hinder us
from godly union and concord; that, as there is but one Body
and one Spirit, one hope of our calling, one Lord, one Faith,
one Baptism, one God and Father of us all, so we may be all
of one heart and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth
and peace, of faith and charity, and may with one mind and
one mouth glorify thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, p.818).

Third Sunday of Easter: Do We Love the Risen Christ in Others?

Today's Scripture Readings

Acts 9:1-20 (NRSV)

Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" He asked, "Who are you, Lord?" The reply came, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do." The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias." He answered, "Here I am, Lord." The Lord said to him, "Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight." But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name." But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name." So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said,

"Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit." And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

For several days he was with the disciples in Damascus, and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, "He is the Son of God."

Psalm 30 (BCP., p.621)


Revelation 5: 11-14 (NRSV)

I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, singing with full voice,

"Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!"

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing,

"To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb

be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"

And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" And the elders fell down and worshiped.

John 21: 1-19 (NRSV)

Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing." They said to him, "We will go with you." They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, "Children, you have no fish, have you?" They answered him, "No." He said to them, "Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some." So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish that you have just caught." So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, "Who are you?" because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs."

A second time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Tend my sheep." He said to him the third time, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go." (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, "Follow me." 

Blog Reflection

It must have been quite shocking for Ananias to be given the assignment of restoring sight to Saul.  We read in the account from Acts of how Jesus called him to lay hands on the soon to arrive Saul and give him back his sight.  Ananias hesitates based on what he had heard and known.  Yet, Jesus calls him to the task, that would be the beginning of Saul's new life in Christ.  Because for the first time, Saul would see anew with his physical eyes, and with the eyes of faith the Crucified and Risen Christ as he was baptized by Peter and taught by the Apostles to prepare him for the ministry to the Gentiles. 

Ananias experienced what all of us do at some point.  When we have heard something about someone else and then are called to confront her/him with an act of hospitality and kindness, we respond in fear.   The problem is that when we respond to God's call with the fear of the past, we become deaf to God's work in the here and now.  In Christ, God challenges us to let go of our blindness to God's presence and work in others around us.  Even those we may have some stereotypical thought about.   Especially those who have been blinded by ignorance, prejudice and a refusal to grow past their common held notions.  Yet, God empowers us for the ministry of giving sight to anyone who comes to a new understanding of God in Christ, and to invite them into the Household of God, to pray and work with them in the work of reconciliation and healing.

As we turn our attention to the Gospel of John, there are some problems with the text that we have to confront.

It is really odd that the resurrection story in John 21 is so disconnected from what happened in last weeks narrative in John 20.   John 21 seems to come from the point of view that John 20 did not actually happen.  What in the world is going on?

We must keep in mind that the Gospel according to John was most likely not written by the Apostle and Evangelist himself.  Though there are indications that what is written could have come from John, the various twists and turns in the Gospel suggest that it was probably compiled by more than one person.   It is very possible that it could have been a small committee of people who just couldn't agree on what belonged in it. So they all got a little piece of what they wanted in there to satisfy everyone.  There are plenty of  good commentaries out there, but they are just that.  Commentaries, opinions.  Some more educated than others.  Also, the argument to let the Scriptures stand on their own and the Holy Spirit take care of it, doesn't work either.  Christians have been interpreting the Holy Spirit for centuries.   Look where that has gotten us?  Antisemitism, homophobia, sexism, racism, religious supercessionism, you name it.  No thank you.

Instead, let's pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying through the accredited scholarship of those who know a lot more than we do.

This Gospel reading though has some things in it that are very familiar.  The sea near Galilee as was said in Luke 5 when Jesus called Peter and the other disciples to be fishers of people.  Is it possible that this was something extra from Luke that just got thrown in?  Anything is possible.

What is written there has a lot to say.  Some important things we need to consider.  Many of them come from a terrific Biblical Commentary (opinion I know) blog called Progressive Involvement. 

First, each of the Apostles named are those who have had some problem with their relationship and/or faith in Jesus.  So, we begin not with those who were said to be strong and courageous, but those who have had issues that remain unresolved. God often comes to us in the midst of our confusion and unresolved issues, to bring us some kind of truth that we may not have looked at before.  Jesus will knock as long as it takes.  But, He fully intends to get our attention.   The question is, are we listening and watching for Him?

Second, the Apostles in this narrative have kind of broken away from the group and gone back to what they were doing before. The Jesus thing did not quite work out the way they wanted.  So, they go back to fishing all night.  And as they return to what they were doing before they were called by Jesus, so they are unable to make progress in their lives. They are in darkness and disbelief.  So, they spend the night on the old boring, but familiar things. They don't require a lot of energy, but they are willing to spend what they have on that which does not bring them results. They are kind of like those who attended the Great Vigil of Easter, and well, all the excitement is over.  Lent is done. Let's go back to no longer paying attention.  Let's go back to living in the dark about what the Christian life is really about. After all, it was only a Sunday. We don't live Easter. We just celebrate it, and well, it's all over.

As the darkness gives way to the "dawn from on high that breaks upon us" (Luke 1:78) Jesus comes and tells them to throw the net on the other side.  That's when they catch so much fish, that they are lucky that the nets did not break.  Still, they did not recognize Jesus.  You mean, they did not recognize Jesus from the last time they caught all those fish?  Sometimes, it takes another knock of reality from God, before we get our act together.  Are we listening for the knock?  Or have we rolled the stone back over th entrance to the tomb.  Who wants to be reminded of what the Risen Christ might call us to do?

When they realize that it is Jesus that calls them from the sea shore, we see Peter jump in to the river to cleanse himself and swim towards Jesus.  When the disciples meet up with Jesus, they share a meal by breaking bread and sharing in the fish they caught.  This scene is very familiar to the story in Luke 24: 13-35.  It is in the sharing of a meal in thanksgiving to God that they come together to listen and learn from Jesus. 

Do we see our Baptism as the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit so that we are part of the Household of God, with a responsibility towards others? 

Do we come to the Eucharist to listen to and learn from Jesus as we share in God's Goodness through the Body and Blood of Christ, to share God's Presence with the world around us?

The last part of this Gospel has some very important points to be made.  The following is take from Progressive Involvement.

Jesus addresses Peter directly.  Three times Jesus asks Peter if he loves him.  In the first two instances, Jesus uses the word agapas--unconditional love.  In the last query, Jesus uses the word phileis--brotherly love.  Each time, Peter responds that he does love Jesus, but with a phileis love, not an agape one.  In other words, Peter's "love" is not at the same level as the "love" in Jesus' question. 

This seemed to be one of the Beloved Disciple's main points of dispute with Peter:  Peter doesn't love Jesus enough.  Indeed, the first question Jesus asked--"Do you love me more than these?"--would indicate that Peter may love "these," the disciples or perhaps the implements of his fishing craft, more than he loves Jesus. 

Secondly, each time Peter responds, "Yes Lord, you know that I love you," the word the fourth gospel uses for "know" here is oida.  This is knowledge at the "every day" level, the knowledge based on direct experience and intellectual discernment.  In the last exchange, Peter says again, "Lord, you know--oida--all things."  Then, however, Peter shifts to ginosko for "know":  "You know--ginosko, interior, mystical, "spiritual knowing"--that I love you." 

Ginosko is the kind of "knowing" that really counts in the fourth gospel.  Peter finally gets the "knowing" right--(as an addendum on the third try)--but he still doesn't get the love right.  Jesus finally gives in a bit, again on the third try, by reducing the love from agape to phileis perhaps in the hope that Peter can finally identify with him at least at that level.

Jesus' instructions to Peter follow this pattern:  feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep.  Wes Howard-Brook:  "The alternation between lambs and sheep also brings to mind the dual role of the disciples.  They are both like Jesus, the Lamb of God, who will be sacrificed for the sake of the people, but are also those who follow, like the sheep Jesus leads (p. 478)."

The last time Peter was at a charcoal fire, he was there with "the slaves and the police" (18: 18) at which he denied three times that he was a follower of Jesus.  At this post-resurrection charcoal fire, he is with Jesus and the disciples, but still doesn't quite get that the center of discipleship is unconditional and intimate love of Jesus.  Nevertheless, in spite of Peter's disappointing performance in this dialog, Jesus calls him to the central task of discipleship which is tending and caring for the sheep. 

After the three-fold question of love, Jesus issues an "amen, amen" saying, an indication of special importance.  In the fourth gospel, Jesus willingly goes to the cross (10: 18).  Here, Jesus says that, while Peter will indeed die for the faith, he will do so unwillingly.  Peter is being taken where he does not wish to go.

Are we willing to seek God's help to love one another with the sense that each person is our sister and brother?  Can we love them with phileis (brotherly love) so that they can be drawn closer to God's (agape) love?   Can we understand that being a Christian is about living in community with others? 

Today, the Risen Christ asks us with Peter, do you love (phileis) me? 

How are we responding to His question?

Amen.

Prayers

O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Collect for the Third Sunday in Easter, Book of Common Prayer, p.224).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, p. 815).

Almighty God, kindle, we pray, in every heart the true love of
peace, and guide with your wisdom those who take counsel
for the nations of the earth, that in tranquillity your dominion
may increase until the earth is filled with the knowledge of your
love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for
ever. Amen. (Prayer for Peace, Book of Common Prayer, p.246),

Good Friday: God's Loving Arms Forever Outstretched

Today's Scripture Readings

Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (NRSV)

See, my servant shall prosper;
he shall be exalted and lifted up,
and shall be very high.

Just as there were many who were astonished at him
--so marred was his appearance, beyond human semblance,
and his form beyond that of mortals--
so he shall startle many nations;
kings shall shut their mouths because of him;
for that which had not been told them they shall see,
and that which they had not heard they shall contemplate.

Who has believed what we have heard?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by others;
a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity;
and as one from whom others hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him of no account.

Surely he has borne our infirmities
and carried our diseases;
yet we accounted him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions,
crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the punishment that made us whole,
and by his bruises we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have all turned to our own way,
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
By a perversion of justice he was taken away.
Who could have imagined his future?
For he was cut off from the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people.
They made his grave with the wicked
and his tomb with the rich,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him with pain.
When you make his life an offering for sin,
he shall see his offspring, and shall prolong his days;
through him the will of the LORD shall prosper.
Out of his anguish he shall see light;
he shall find satisfaction through his knowledge.
The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous,
and he shall bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong;
because he poured out himself to death,
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.

Psalm 22 (BCP., p. 610)


Hebrews 4: 14-15 5: 7-9 (NRSV)

Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him,

John 19: 16b-36 (NRSV)

So they took Jesus; and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." Many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'This man said, I am King of the Jews.'" Pilate answered, "What I have written I have written." When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top. So they said to one another, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it." This was to fulfill what the scripture says,

"They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots."
And that is what the soldiers did.

Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, "Woman, here is your son." Then he said to the disciple, "Here is your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.

After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), "I am thirsty." A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, "It is finished." Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out. (He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.) These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, "None of his bones shall be broken." And again another passage of scripture says, "They will look on the one whom they have pierced."

Blog Reflection

This Christ is a man who himself lived with tension and contradiction and inner conflict.
He is a man surrounded by friends who yet withdraws to be apart in the desert.

He is a son and yet he separates himself from his family and asks “who is my mother and who are my brothers?”

He stays alone with himself through long nights of prayer but still journeys on on a road that he knows will bring him to suffering and to death.

He is the redeemer who on the Cross holds together the vertical, pointing towards God, and the horizontal, arms outstretched to the world.

In Christ all things will be brought together.

In Christ all things will be well.  (Living with Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality, Esther de Waal p.39,40).

I once did Lectio Divina on the following words from Thomas A Kempis' The Imitation of Christ.  "The Cross is always ready and waits everywhere, for you" (p. 93).

What is it like to look back on life and discover instances when we may have found the Cross waiting for us, and the arms of our loving Savior with His arms outstretched?

When I was a Church Music major at Eastern Nazarene College between 1988 to 1994, I saw the health of my Church Music Professor decline very rapidly.  It declined due to Lu Gehrig's Disease.  In February of 1994, he lost his battle with the disease and died.  When I began attending college in the Fall of 1988, he was a healthy man.  He had a Master's Degree in trombone, and a magnificent tenor voice.  When he conducted the Messiah every December, performed by the Choral Union, he was masterful, full of gesture and life.  By the time he died, he was lucky if he could raise his arms off his electric wheelchair to scratch his nose.

One summer while I was there, I needed help to pass my sight singing proficiency exam that was to be taken at the beginning of the next school year.  I had failed it four times.  The exam to be given me was my last chance, or I would not get my degree.  One day, I woke up really late for my on campus summer job.  I did not have time to take a shower.  I was miserable all day.  After work, I went to work with him on my sight singing practice.  I was just about in tears. Prof. Howard heard my story compassionately.   After I finished, he just about laughed himself to death.  He told me that if he had told his wife over the phone that he was about devastated because he woke up late, did not take a shower and all that, his wife would laugh for about 15 minutes.  He said that his wife would eventually say: "So what!!" My professor continued: "You were able to wake up and live another day.  You got to go to work without getting fired.  You were able to do what you could. You did what you were suppose to do."  Before I forget, I did pass the exam in the Fall.

I was thinking about this today as I was meditating on what Good Friday is all about. Here was a man, who was literally losing all the ability to move the muscles in his body voluntarily, yet he was telling me to cheer up and get on with life. He told me with no bitterness or sorrow for himself.  His main concern was encouraging me. 

On Good Friday, Jesus Christ is God's remedy for our sins.  God knowing that we could not accomplish our salvation unless God intervened on our behalf, did more than that.  God, in the Person of Jesus Christ, became the punishment our sins deserved.  He suffered a most agonizing death to restore us to friendship with God.  All that Jesus suffered on this most holy of days, was God acting in our place, so that God can look upon us all through the blood of God's Son and see us forgiven and liberated to live our lives in friendship with God and one another.  We are the one's who sinned by being so immature.  But, God through life and death of Christ showed us the Way (See John 14:6) back to God's Self.

It is not enough to come to this day after five weeks of fasting, prayer and alms giving to go back to the way we were.  As people baptized into Christ Jesus, we have shared in His death and resurrection.  By the power of the Holy Spirit that came on Pentecost because of Christ's resurrection, we are enabled by God's grace to grow in holiness through our relationships with others.  Including, but not limited to the marginalized, poor, oppressed, and the physically/psychologically challenged.  

The Cross is not the Christianists excuse for targeting women, LGBT people, Muslims, Jews, Native Americans, African Americans, Liberals, etc.  The Cross is not a progressives excuse to not forgive and pray for Christianists who chose to hate in the Name of Christ.  The Cross is not a reason for the conviction to justify the closing down of planned parenthood offices nation wide, or targeting abortion doctors to murder.  The Cross is not our emblem to deny health care to the sick and vulnerable.  Nor is it the justification for drone missiles killing whole families in Pakistan, or targeting Americans suspected of being terrorists.  The need for a Savior who died on the Cross, is not our scapegoat for not being good stewards of the environment, our possessions, our sexuality, our families and children.  The Cross on which Jesus died, does not mean the Judaism has been superseded by Christianity and therefore is no longer a valid bulwark of faith. 

The Cross is our reference point for "the path of God's commandments" so that "our hearts may overflow with the inexpressible delight of love" (vs. 49, Prologue of the Rule of St. Benedict, p.165).   The love by which the loving arms of God are forever outstretched to embrace all who long for God's mercy and salvation, is our reason and text book for embracing one another in charity and hope.  

As we pray throughout the day, let us all take time to ask God to recreate new hearts in us by the Holy Spirit (Psalm 51:11).   That we may love God, others and ourselves with a holy and life-giving love.   The kind that welcomes all, offers reconciliation and recreates the face of the earth.

Amen.

Prayers

Almighty God, we pray you graciously to behold this your
family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be
betrayed, and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer
death upon the cross; who now lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Good Friday, Book of Common Prayer, p.221).


Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but
first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he
was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way
of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and
peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  (Collect for Fridays, Book of Common Prayer, p.99).


Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on
the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within
the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit
that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those
who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for
the honor of your Name. Amen.  (Prayer for Mission, Book of Common Prayer, p.101).

Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday: Holy Week Means Everyone Counts

Today's Scripture Readings

Mark 11:1-11 (NRSV)

When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, `Why are you doing this?' just say this, `The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.'" They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?" They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting,

"Hosanna!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David!

Hosanna in the highest heaven!"

Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. 

Isaiah 50:4-9a (NRSV)

The Lord GOD has given me

the tongue of a teacher,

that I may know how to sustain

the weary with a word.

Morning by morning he wakens--

wakens my ear

to listen as those who are taught.

The Lord GOD has opened my ear,

and I was not rebellious,

I did not turn backward.

I gave my back to those who struck me,

and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;

I did not hide my face

from insult and spitting.

The Lord GOD helps me;

therefore I have not been disgraced;

therefore I have set my face like flint,

and I know that I shall not be put to shame;

he who vindicates me is near.

Who will contend with me?

Let us stand up together.

Who are my adversaries?

Let them confront me.

It is the Lord GOD who helps me;

who will declare me guilty?

Psalm 31:9-16 (BCP., p.623)


Philippians 2:5-11 (NRSV)

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

who, though he was in the form of God,

did not regard equality with God

as something to be exploited,

but emptied himself,

taking the form of a slave,

being born in human likeness.

And being found in human form,

he humbled himself

and became obedient to the point of death--

even death on a cross.

Therefore God also highly exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

so that at the name of Jesus

every knee should bend,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue should confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

The Passion of Jesus Christ According to Mark 14:1-15:47 (NRSV)


Blog Reflection

Holy Week should be the week during which Christians are able to just sit back and take in the events we celebrate.  We should just take part in all of the Holy Week Liturgies the Church offers and just go back to what we were doing before.  Sadly, we Christians already celebrate Holy Week in that way.  As long as I can remember, Christians observe the Holy Week rituals as if Christians are the only ones that matter.  Anyone who doesn't celebrate what we remember this week is doing something wrong.  No wonder so many look at Christians on this week and respond with, "So what!!  It is just business as usual."

Contrary to what many may see and think, Holy Week is so much greater than our own little world.  There is more at stake during Holy Week than our creeds or the Bible being correctly understood and believed.  Holy Week is about every person's journey in the face of human suffering, betrayal and the fickleness of the human heart as prominent as they can be.  We see it every year on Palm Sunday.  Jesus is welcomed by the same people into Jerusalem who will be later portrayed as crying "Crucify Him!! Crucify Him!!"  Yet, if we pay more attention to how the Passion reading happens during the Liturgy, it is the worship congregation that often reads and recites those words.  The meaning is so very important.  It is not the Jews who crucified Jesus and are therefore irrelevant to the rest of the World (all of which is as incorrect as possible), it is our sins, and God's love for all of us.  Our sins were not strong enough for God who is so madly in love with all of us, that God gave Jesus to suffer the agonizing death He endured.  God's love for all of us without exception is so great, so powerful that God identified with all of us in Jesus to the point of the complete abandonment of Self to redeem all of us from the worst of ourselves.

The events of Holy Week, along with all of the ritualistic celebrations are an opportunity for all of us to find God at work in Jesus exactly where we think God is just not interested.  Just when it appears as if all hope is lost, not even death is strong enough to keep Jesus dead in the grave.  Before we can effectively celebrate and grow in our faith life as Christians in the Easter event, we first must face our own brokenness, our humility and humanness in the passion and death of Jesus.  It does not stop there.  Jesus shows us how God can do more than we can hope for or imagine at the very worst of human tragedies, and find new hope and life by surrendering everything we are and have into God's hands with faith and trust.   

This past week we the Christian Faith used as a weapon of mass destruction.  When Indiana passed their law to allow discrimination of LGBT people on the basis of "religious liberty," they effectively made it possible for Christians to excuse themselves from any means of living the message of the Gospel by simply saying that it "goes against our religion."   If you want to talk about an act of sacrilege just before Holy Week, I believe we have the worst kind of example.  Jesus Christ who loved even Judas who betrayed him, is inaccurately portrayed in such laws as loving others with exceptions based on preconceived notions and religious arrogance.  Anyone who does not "measure up" to a particular Christians ideal of what another person should be, becomes justification for spiritual malpractice and doctrinal abuse.

As we wander into Holy Week with Jesus, we may want to ponder on what the events and rituals really mean to us.  Are we serious about our Baptismal Vows that we will renew together this week?   Or are we just saying such things to get through another Holy Week to eat the ham on Easter Day?  Will celebrating the Paschal Mystery this week really change us to the point in which we trust in God to love others as Christ has loved us?  Or, will we join Judas in selling Jesus for thirty pieces of silver to get that trouble maker who loves others better than we do out of the way?

Holy Week means that everyone counts.  Including us.  Including others around us who are different than us, and with whom we share this earth with.  Whether we succeed or fail, God loves and redeems us all.

As we journey together this Holy Week, may Christians grow and evolve into the Easter People Christ came to save us to be.

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the
human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to
take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross,
giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant
that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share
in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday. The Book of Common Prayer, p.219).

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on
the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within
the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit
that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those
who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for
the honor of your Name. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, p.101).

Fourth Sunday in Lent: The Greatest Challenge of Christian Relationships

 
Today's Scripture Readings

Numbers 21:4-9 (NRSV)

From Mount Hor the Israelites set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; but the people became impatient on the way. The people spoke against God and against Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food." Then the LORD sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD to take away the serpents from us." So Moses prayed for the people. And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live." So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 (BCP., p.746)


Ephesians 2:1-10 (NRSV)

You were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. All of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-- by grace you have been saved-- and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God-- not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.

John 3:14-21 (NRSV)

Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God."

Blog Reflection

This Sunday, we are brought face to face with the greatest challenge in Christian relationships.  How are we to be a good reflection of those relationships in a world where the very word Christian brings a whole array of meanings?  Some are conclusive while others are elusive.

If you say the word Christian to a person who is of a particular group of people who have experienced that word as being hurtful, their response could be very negative.  It could also be very neutral.  One might hear similar to what Mahatma Gandhi said.  "I like your Jesus, but I do not like your Christians."  I remember a woman once sing out loud over a microphone, "Jesus, save us from your followers."  What in the world is wrong with the word Christian?  Why does it bring such responses?  I am not the only one asking these questions this weekend.  The Rev. Barbara Mraz the Writer in Residence at St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church in St. Paul, MN is also asking this question.  You can read her blog post here. 

I have been writing a lot this Lent about words such as The Holy Essence of God, and facing the best and worst of ourselves and others.  These words are a special part of my own personal journey with God, because the more I have studied about the word Christian and asked the question of what is wrong with that word; I have realized that there are so many things in my own life that are a contradiction to that word.  One of the things a Benedictine Novice such as myself learns very quickly is that I am not the nicest guy on earth.  I think way too much about myself as opposed to my neighbor.  I struggle every day with my own ego and brush up against my false-sense of self that gets all wrapped up in words and labels.  In as much as I write about the issues of injustice and prejudice, I know that I too hold attitudes within myself that are part of the problem, not the solution.

As I read through the readings for this Sunday's Liturgy, I am drawn to the stark reality that Jesus is telling us that the word Christian is not a word of privilege.  It is not a term that means that I get to impose what I think or believe on anyone else.  I can share it, write about it and do it.  I can also if I am not careful enough, determine that the word Christian stops with myself and has no bearing on my relationship with God and others around me.  It can be so easy for me to think that I am someone really special, just because I use that word Christian to define myself in word only, and excuse myself from acting on what the word means.

The message of these Scripture readings is that God did not stop at loving the world just because we were lost in our sins.  God loved the world so much, that Jesus came as God's perfect revelation in the human form to save the world and not just Christians.  God sent the Son into the world to save it without condemnation, so that we could live into a relationship with God within the context of our relationships.  Such is the work of our faith, and the faith that makes our work worthwhile.  The world in which God sent Jesus includes those who disagree with each other, those who even dislike one another and those who wonder why in the world God still puts up with us.  When we look at the violence expressed in human suffering all over the world over things like religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression/identity, the powerful vs the weak, the sick, the lonely, the dying etc., what is it about all of us that keeps God's loving graciousness fixed on us as the apple of God's eyes?

The answer for the Christian (as difficult of a word as it is), is a cross on a hill, far away on which Jesus said, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34 NRSV).   God loves each of us so extravagantly that "God did not withhold his own son, but gave him up for all of us." (Romans 8:32).  In Jesus' sacrifice, He willingly handed over His relationship to His Father, only saving His faith that God would raise Him up.   Jesus made Himself as vulnerable as any man alive, and paid the ultimate price of His life out of love, humility and obedience to God's will.

Perhaps the greatest challenge of Christian relationships is that to live them means to set aside even the pride of that name to make ourselves as vulnerable as Jesus made Himself.  It is much too risky say for a lesbian and/or gay person who has experienced rejection, violence and oppression in the Name of Jesus, because she/he will have to risk the possibility of healing to the point of forgiving and reconciling her/himself with those who continue to harm her/him just because.  It is much too risky for an evangelical pastor who has always preached against homosexuality and/or abortion to admit she/he has misinterpreted the scriptures all these years and to change her/his position.  It could not only mean the loss of her/his pastoral ministry in her/his church, but also the esteem of her/his colleagues and friends.  A Christian who stands up against racism or for greater gun control, could face a lot more than her/his reputation going down the drain.  All because the word Christian means certain things for some, and different things to others.

The name Christian often means many other things, but please don't tell us that it means that we have to love others who are different than ourselves beyond our church doors, or outside of our beliefs.  That requires way too much.  Such is too much of a slippery slope that could mean that the Jesus who is an abstract idea held captive in the name of Christian actually becomes a real, breathing and life-giving Savior.  It would mean that Jesus means so much more than watching The Passion of Christ or Jesus of Nazareth.  The name Christian would be who we are because our relationships as challenging as they are, are no longer an acceptable excuse for us to avoid.  Including if it means that I must sacrifice even myself for the benefit of the other person.

O God, make speed to save us.  O Lord, make haste to help us.  May our journey of Lent bring us closer to being what the word Christian is about in the great challenges of our relationships.

Amen.


Prayers

Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down
from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world:
Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in
him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one
God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Fourth Sunday in Lent.  The Book of Common Prayer, p. 219).

Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have
made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and
make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily
lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission
and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Ash Wednesday.  The Book of Common Prayer. p.217).
 
Almighty God, who created us in your image: Grant us
grace fearlessly to contend against evil and to make no peace
with oppression; and, that we may reverently use our freedom,
help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice in our
communities and among the nations, to the glory of your holy
Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Collect for Social Justice.  The Book of Common Prayer, p. 260).

Third Sunday After The Epiphany: Jesus Calls and Loves Us Where We Are

Today's Scripture Readings

Jonah 3:1-5, 10 (NRSV)

The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you." So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do.

Psalm 62 (BCP., p.669)


1 Corinthians 7:29-31 (NRSV)

I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.

Mark 1:14-20 (NRSV)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea-- for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

Blog Reflection

I often wonder what score those first disciples would have gotten on their General Ordination Exams (GOE).  Who would their facilitators been?  Even more so, who would have been on their discernment committees?   Who would their Formation Masters have been?  If a church body were able to determine their suitability for ministry, what kind of criteria would be used?  What might the Church look like today if a Vocation's Director decided that Peter or John were not qualified to be Apostles?

The readings for today are all about God calling us.  God called Jonah to go to the people of Nineveh.  Paul tells us to go on our way as if we have nothing.  Jesus calls those first disciples from where they are.  In Mark's Gospel, this narrative does not go one with the endless names.  It just gives a few names and says they left what they had in hand and followed Jesus.  It sounds to me like Mark doesn't want to waste any time.

God calls us where we are, because God loves us where we are in Jesus.  Jesus was God's prefect revelation in the human person.  All of our human limitations, potential and promise came to us infused by the Divine Presence in God's Anointed One.  "All the fullness of God's Divinity was pleased to dwell" (see Colossians 1:19) in our humanity in Jesus who came to love us where we are, and call us to do God's work in obedience to God's will in the here and now.  The obstacles we face in our lives including the labels others place upon us, along with whatever our history may say about us; prevent God from bringing us where God wants us, only if we put ourselves in God's way.

Though I am a Monk in training, there are so many ways in which I fail to be obedient, or agree to conversion of my manners, and evade God through instability.  God does not ask me (or anyone) to always succeed.  All God asks of us is to be faithful in responding to Jesus who loves us and calls us from where we are.  The way to holiness of heart and life is through allowing God to love us in the midst of our pain, disobedience and confusion and bring about God's healing and reconciliation in our lives and those around us.  In The Rule of St. Benedict at the end of Chapter 4 On the Tools of Good Works, he writes: "never despair of God's mercy." 

God calls us without discriminating against our gender, race, culture, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, health condition, disability, language or for any other reason.  It is we who discriminate against ourselves and/or one another.  Each of us are called and loved by Jesus to do in this moment, in this vocation and doing this work what the Holy Spirit empowers us to do.  Whether that vocation is ordained ministry, parents, spouses, manual labor, religious life, lay people, teaching, social justice work and/or administration.  This list is hardly comprehensive.  I have left out a vocation that someone is being called to right now.

Are we listening for God to call us right here and now?

What are we ready to set aside to follow the God who loves us and calls us "by name"?  (See Isaiah 43:1b).

What do we hear God calling us to in the depths of our hearts?

Jesus is calling each of us to let Him love us here where we are.   The sky is the limit with the possibilities that are before us if we accept the love and call of Jesus.  

What will your answer be?

O Jesus, joy of loving hearts,
the fount of life and our true light,
we seek the peace your love imparts,
and stand rejoicing in your sight.
(Hymnal 1980 #649).

Prayers

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our
Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News
of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive
the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Third Sunday After the Epiphany.  The Book of Common Prayer, p. 215).

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole
body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified:
Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before
you for all members of your holy Church, that in their
vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you;
through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.  (Prayer for Mission, The Book of Common Prayer, p.100).

Almighty Father, whose blessed Son before his passion prayed
for his disciples that they might be one, as you and he are one:
Grant that your Church, being bound together in love and
obedience to you, may be united in one body by the one Spirit,
that the world may believe in him whom you have sent, your
Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in
the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Prayer for the Unity of the Church, The Book of Common Prayer, p.255).