From Christ the King to Advent

“Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.” (Collect for Christ The King, Book of Common Prayer)

The Feast of Christ the King is celebrated on the last Sunday of the Year (the Church Year, not the Calendar Year). The year begins on the First Sunday of Advent during which the Coming Christ is proclaimed by the Holy Spirit, Angels, John the Baptist and Mary. During the year with the help of the Sunday Gospel readings, we walk with Jesus on his journey as he “grows in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and Human Beings.”

We share in his victories and in his trials and tribulations, we are there when he is welcomed and praised and when he is despised and rejected. Everyone had a vision of who the Messiah would be, of what he would do and of how he would make their world better. As it turned out many people were disappointed in him. He spoke truth to power, the government and the religious establishment. Turns out ‘power’ did not appreciate the truth. He spoke truth to his disciples. Turns out they did not always like truth either.

Borrowing from the Prophet Isaiah, Jesus proclaimed a vision of the Kingdom of God on Earth as it is in Heaven.

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’(Luke 4:16-19)

Jesus gave hope to all those who would listen to him, to those who were open to a God and a life larger than they could ever ask or imagine. He also healed the sick, raised the dead and taught people that the only Commandment that mattered was “love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul and strength, and Love your neighbor as yourself.”

On Christ the King we celebrate the achievement of that goal as well as the reality that its ultimate achievement depends on those of us who follow Jesus on the Way.

We will begin the new year in the same way we end the old: “Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule. Amen.”

All Saints Day Outshines the War on Halloween

I am not angry about it, it is certainly not a disaster in most of our lives, but there is a war on Halloween. You may not have heard of it, but there is an effort by some to replace Halloween with Harvest Festivals or Fall Flings, or in the worst case scenarios, Judgment Houses. Halloween is considered by some to be evil, created by Satan or at best confusing or un-necessary. Contrary to these ideas, I believe Halloween is a part of what I call the “Sacred Three Days.” Yes, in the Christian Church, we commonly refer to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter (or the Great Vigil of Easter) as the Sacred Three Days, and I agree that they are.

I also happen to believe that Halloween, All Saints Day and All Souls Day are a second “Sacred three Days.” Halloween began as a Celtic Festival presided over by Druid Priests in Northern Britain before Christianity come into the Island after 600 CE. In the dark, short days of Fall and Winter people’s thoughts turned to the fear of those things that can hurt or frighten them: wild beasts, lack of food, the apparent death of plants, and the potential death of livestock, that sustained their lives, and the worst fear of all, their own deaths. The Feast of Samhain gave them a chance to stare fear and death in the face and refuse to give in to them. To believe that darkness would be preceded by light, winter by spring and death by life. This gave them an opportunity to believe that life was stronger than death. “Samhain was seen as a liminal time, when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld could more easily be crossed. This meant the 'spirits’ could more easily come into our world.” I believe that this three day celebration in the church can also be a time that these spiritual boundaries can be easily crossed, as we connect with “those whom we love, but see no longer.”

When Christianity came into the British Isles after 600, the Christians as they are wont to do, adopted the feast of Samhain and Baptized it and it became “All Hallows Eve,” the eve of All Saints Day, the day they remembered the lives of those Saints who had become examples for Christians on how to live their lives, as well as the lives of ordinary people, those who are saints to their friends and family and nobody else. This was a time to celebrate the fact that life is stronger than death, that good is stronger than evil and that even when one is afraid, it is possible to stand up to those things of which we are afraid, including the greatest fear of all, the fear of death. Four centuries later the commemoration of those personal saints was moved to the following day, November 2.

As we twenty-first century Christians celebrate this powerful three days, we draw on Holy Scripture for inspiration and words to express those feelings for which we are, at times, speechless.

On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-matured wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-matured wines strained clear. And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death for ever.

Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation. (Isaiah 25: 1-6a)

All Hallows Eve, “Halloween,” All Saints Day and All Souls Day give us an opportunity to participate in the things that are important to us: to dress up as creatures that are frightening or exciting or challenging, and to have fun doing it; to stare fear and death in the face and to proclaim that love is stronger than fear and that life is stronger than death.

The Church on All Saints and All Souls Days gives us a safe space to use all of our senses in remembering “those whom we love but see no more.” We burn incense and we pray for our departed loved ones; the good, the bad and the ugly. At Christ Church we light candles in their memories, perhaps shedding a few tears, smiling at found memories and often offering forgiveness, or asking forgiveness.

In our prayers and our sermons we remember honestly our lives together, when we loved and when we were shown love, when we were hurt and when we hurt others. As we gather together on these days we know those in our midst who have lost loved ones, not just from “natural causes,” but through tragedy: loved ones who died in tragic accidents, or horrible diseases much too young; who were murdered or committed suicide or died of drug overdoses.

All Saints and All Souls offer us an opportunity to offer up our grief and pain to God as we pray for continual healing. It also offers us an opportunity to remember again, that all of those who have Gone before us are gifts to us from God, and that we are gifts from God to them. I use the present tense, because we as Christians believe that for God’s people, life is changed not ended, and that the relationships we have we with each other can never end.

John the Divine reminds us in The New Testament book of Revelation that:

Then 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; 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.’           

The writer and Presbyterian Minister, Fredrick Buechner describes the importance of these three days and what it means to belong to the Holy People of God.

On all Saints’ Day, it is not just the saints of the church that we should remember in our prayers, but all the foolish ones and wise ones, the shy ones and overbearing ones, the broken ones and whole ones, the despots and tosspots and crackpots of our lives who one way or another, have been our particular fathers, mothers, (sisters and brothers), and saints.

Some Simple Reflections

A Day of Abundant Living

What a wonderful Sunday, a day of peace a day of Sabbath, a day of beauty, worship and joy. The day began with a beautiful pre-dawn drive from Titus to Albertville where we at Christ Church completed our preparations for “Bring a Friend Sunday.” Members of the congregation invited friends, real and “virtual,” (FB, Twitter, invisible) to join us for worship and fellowship. We were joined by friends from our Sister Church, Epiphany, in Guntersville, Alabama as well as by family members, and one person even brought a young man who works at her Gym. The music was wonderful, the Holy Eucharist always joins us with Jesus and one another and the after worship food and fellowship was great. Thanks to all who made this day possible.

On leaving church I passed by the Assisted Living facility where my mother lives and had Sunday Dinner with her and some of her friends. Good conversation, good food, and a time to share  memories as well as conversations about the Braves, the Major League Playoffs (without the Braves), and plans for some to watch the Presidents Cup Golf Tournament.

On down to Guntersville to The Whole Back Stage to enjoy the wonderful musical “Black Tie Broadway,” performed by a cast of 75 very talented men, women and children. I actually got to meet in person a long time FB friend who was a cast member. What a wonderful blessing. Virtual friends are good; real, live ones are even better. The Play was a review of some of the greatest Broadway music of the past 75 years. Still four shows left this coming weekend. Don’t miss it.

No day would be complete without learning something new, and had a wonderful learning experience that may seem simple to you technologically savvy folks out there. I videoed a class project for a friend on my phone and emailed it to him, yes emailed it. Not only can I send photos from my phone but now I know how to send videos as well.

I ended the day with a peaceful three mile walk, stopping by Foodland to pick up two cans of tomato soup and a bag of Sour Cream and Cheddar Chips for supper. Truly a good day.

“This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

Blessings and abundance to all!

St. Francis, Pope Francis, the United States and, oh yes, Jesus

As we approach the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the 13^th century son of a wealthy Italian cloth merchant, who abandoned his father and his wealth and founded the Franciscan Order of Friars, the Poor Clares order for women and the Third order of Franciscans for men and women, married and single, it is fitting that we reflect on the visit to the United States by Pope Francis. Francis takes his name from this Saint who lived a life of simplicity, poverty and humility as he followed Jesus’ call to “rebuild His Church.”

I believe first off that the Pope’s visit to the United States opened the eyes and hearts of many Americans to God’s presence in the world, to the presence of the Holy Spirit. I believe this is true whether one is Catholic or Protestant, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu as well as many other persons who believe in a creator or creative power. I even sense that some unbelievers are impressed with the Pope’s presence, ministry and message in the world.

I am excited that Pope Francis spent five days in the United States, that he visited the centers of political, financial and spiritual power in our country. I agree with the Pope on parts of his message such as climate change and the dangers of unbridled capitalism, and disagree with other parts such as the blessing of same sex relationships, and while I am not a fan of abortion, I do believe it is a woman’s decision and not the church’s or the government’s decision. I doubt that any person agrees with all that the Pope believes about politics, religion and the world.

What excites me about Francis’ visit is that, like Jesus, he does not let the opinions or the actions of others prevent him from proclaiming, by word and action, God’s truth as he understands it. As he proclaims his truth, his message, many Americans get both excited and angry, often at the same time. When the Pope talks about Global Warming or the Economy, and capital punishment liberal Americans feel that he is on their side. When he preaches against abortion and same-sex marriage, conservatives believe that he is with them. What excites me in all of this is the Pope’s message that mercy overcomes sin. The Pope still believes that homosexual relationships should not be sanctioned by the church but welcomes gay people into the fellowship. He believes that abortion is a sin, but has instructed his bishops that women who have abortions can be forgiven.

Like Jesus, the Pope speaks truth to power and is willing to face the consequences that go with speaking this truth. “With the power of his humility, he communicated the message of the gospel that speaks not only to our inward spiritual needs, but also to the sociopolitical realities of our daily lives. His message challenged both conservatives and progressives.”(Carlos Malave, Sorjourners)

In his historic visit to Congress, Pope Francis declared, among other things:

“The fight against poverty and hunger must be fought constantly and on many fronts, especially its causes.

“Our efforts must aim at restoring hope, righting wrongs, maintaining commitments, and thus promoting the well-being of individuals and of peoples.”

“In recent centuries, millions of people came to this land to pursue their dream of building a future in freedom. We, the people of this continent, are not fearful of foreigners, because most of us were once foreigners. I say this to you as the son of immigrants, knowing that so many of you are also descended from immigrants.”

Not all members of congress agreed with all the Pope had to say, though he did get an ovation for his proclamation of the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”(Matthew 7:12) If his visit accomplished no more than the sometimes living of the Golden Rule by the congress and people of the United States, then we have all been blessed.

The Pope affirmed at Mass at Madison Square Garden, that, “knowing that Jesus still walks our streets, that he is part of the lives of his people, that he is involved with us in one vast history of salvation, fills us with hope.”

All I can add to this is, “Amen! So be it!

St. Francis of Assisi, Some Reflections

Saint Francis of Assisi lived from 1181 until 1226. He was born in Italy and founded the Order of Friars Minor (the Franciscan Order) for men, Poor Clares for women, and the Third Order of St. Francis for men and women not able to live the lives of itinerant preachers. These orders exist to this day and Lay Persons, married or single may be members of the Third Order. Francis was the son of a wealthy cloth merchant and grew up as a lover of music and pleasure and fine things.  His father was not thrilled by Francis’ spiritual conversation which happened while Francis was off at war in 1201 through 1203, during which time he spent a year as a prisoner of war. After his conversation he became disillusioned toward the world that surrounded him.

His disillusionment is demonstrated by the story told of a beggar who came and asked for alms while Francis was concluding a business deal on behalf of his father. When he concluded the deal he ran after the beggar and gave him everything he had in his pocket. His father was less than happy with this event. His father attempted to change his mind with threats and beatings. Francis finally renounced his father, publicly laying aside even the garments he was wearing.

Francis claims to have had a mystical vision of Jesus Christ in the country chapel of San Damiano, just outside of Assisi, in which the Icon of Christ Crucified said to him, “Francis, Francis, go and repair My house, which, as you can see is falling into ruins. “ He took this to mean the ruined church in which he was praying, and so he sold some cloth from his father’s store to assist the priest there for this purpose. Later, Francis decided that Christ also meant for him to repair “the church, the body of Christ in the World.”

It has been argued that no one else in History was as dedicated as Francis to imitate the life, and carry out the work of Christ. Francis had a love of the Eucharist and the Stations of the Cross, even though the latter brought him great sorrow. He and his followers celebrated and even venerated poverty, and he believed that nature itself was the mirror of God. In his “Canticle of the Sun” he mentioned Brother Sun, Sister Moon, the wind, water, and Sister Death. He considered himself no friend of Christ if he did not cherish those for whom Christ died.

Because of his love of Creation, he is known as the Patron Saint of animals and the environment. It is for this reason that many Roman Catholic and Episcopal Churches hold ceremonies blessing animals on the Sunday closest to his feast day of October 4. 

As we approach his feast day on Sunday, I leave you with one of Francis’ most profound writings, Canticle of the Sun

Most high, all powerful, all good Lord!
All praise is Yours, all glory, all honor, and all blessing.

To You, alone, Most High, do they belong.
No mortal lips are worthy to pronounce Your name.

Be praised, my Lord, through all Your creatures,
especially through my lord Brother Sun,
who brings the day; and You give light through him.
And he is beautiful and radiant in all his splendor!
Of You, Most High, he bears the likeness.

Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars;
in the heavens You have made them bright, precious and beautiful.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air,
and clouds and storms, and all the weather,
through which You give Your creatures sustenance.

Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Water;
she is very useful, and humble, and precious, and pure.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You brighten the night.
He is beautiful and cheerful, and powerful and strong.

Be praised, my Lord, through our sister Mother Earth,
who feeds us and rules us,
and produces various fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

Be praised, my Lord, through those who forgive for love of You;
through those who endure sickness and trial.

Happy those who endure in peace,
for by You, Most High, they will be crowned.

Be praised, my Lord, through our sister Bodily Death,
from whose embrace no living person can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin!
Happy those she finds doing Your most holy will.
The second death can do no harm to them.

Praise and bless my Lord, and give thanks,
and serve Him with great humility.

Change, an Invitation to Life: The Rich and Poor Have One Thing In Common

Change, an Invitation to Life: The Rich and Poor Have One Thing In Common: “The rich and the poor have this in common: the LORD is the maker of them all.” (Proverbs 22:1-2) Yes, we all have one thing in common an...

The Rich and Poor Have One Thing In Common

“The rich and the poor have this in common: the LORD is the maker of them all.” (Proverbs 22:1-2) Yes, we all have one thing in common and that changes everything else. The rest of this passage gives us an idea how our common creation and common Creator affect (or should, or could, or can) how we live and how we see others.

"Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of anger will fail.Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor. Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate;for the LORD pleads their cause and despoils of life those who despoil them." (Proverbs 22:8-9, 22-23)

If the Lord is the maker of us all, then all are affected by what happens to the other. The world is in the middle of a major refugee crisis, a major migration crisis. People from the Middle East are doing their best to get to Europe to escape violence, death and injury caused by terrorists and by evil governments alike.  In the West, people are coming from Central America and Mexico, running from the dangers of drug cartels, human trafficking and poverty. Some are coming legally and others illegally. 

As we look closer to home we also see those in our own country who live in rural areas or inner cities with poor school systems, few job possibilities, the resultant unemployment and often serious drug problems.  The problems can be huge and the solutions allusive. Often good people, ourselves included, frustrated by the difficult situations give up and settle for finding blame instead: “people are lazy, the just want a handout from the government, I worked for mine, they can work for theirs.” I understand the frustration, I understand the anger, though I also understand that there are those in our nation, including some of our politicians and some of our news media, who foment this anger.  I also live in Alabama, less than eighty miles from Wilcox County which is one of the poorest counties in the United States, with over 16% unemployment, so I have some sense of the challenges some people face in overcoming poverty.

What are we to do? Remember most of us are good people; most of us really do care and do want to do what is right. As Christians we are called to welcome the stranger. To care for the hungry, the homeless, the orphan and the widows. 

I don’t have an answer to that question. Well, actually I do. I have an answer, but not a solution. If the Lord is indeed the maker of all of us, then any injustice or bias we demonstrate toward the poor because they are poor is unacceptable. We must also think get the facts and consider them seriously before blaming the poor for the economic problems of our society, or blaming them for being poor and unemployed and hungry.  This demands that we give the best that we have. Any solution demands serious thought, prayer and study on our part, as well as cooperation with other people of good will.

As I struggle with these questions, I reflect on Roman Catholic Archbishop of El Salvador, Oscar Romero, who said before he was assassinated while celebrating Holy Communion, “when I feed the poor, people called me a saint. When I asked why so many people were poor, they called me a communist.”

As human beings, we truly are tribal creatures. We care first for our families, and then for those who look and act and think as we do.  This is good and important, but at times we are blinded to the biblical reminder that the “Lord is Maker of us all.” It is important to remember that Jesus, himself, was also limited by his human vision to a narrower understanding of the scope of his life and ministry.

It took the Syrophoenician woman, whose story we read in Mark 7:24-37, to teach Jesus that all of God’s people are connected.  When she approached Jesus and asked him to heal her daughter of demon possession, he told her that “it is not fair to take the children’s food and give it to the dogs,” pointing out to her that she, as a Gentile, was not worthy of the blessings God had sent him to bring to the Jews.  As she pointed out to Jesus that “even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the children’s table,” I can almost see the “scales” fall from Jesus’ eyes. Later, as recorded in the Gospel of John, Jesus, in talking with the Samaritan woman at the well, a person a Jewish male should never interact with, shared with her that the “day is coming, and now is, when true worshipers will worship God in Spirit and in Truth.”

Yes, rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, male and female, immigrant and native, Muslim or Christian, all are reminded, that “the Lord is the maker of us all.”

Do We As Christians Really Show Favoritism?

Some Reflections on My Favorite/Least Favorite Book of the Bible: James 2:1-17

Do we as Christians really show favoritism? Do we really prefer wealthy new members in our congregations? 

As the pastor of a wonderful Episcopal Church that has a desire to grow and to bring more people into a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ, I hope that the answer to these questions is a resounding NO. I do, however, believe that James, the brother of Jesus, in his letter to the Churches of his time asks some very, very important questions.

James is concerned about what we do as well as what we say. He seems to believe that our faith has as much, perhaps more, to do with how we act than with what we believe. Today he might even say, “sure, you talk the talk, but do you walk the walk?” He even borders on Heresy when he says, “So faith by itself, if it has no works is dead.”

In our prayers in the Episcopal Church we acknowledge that God’s people come in all shapes and sizes, stages of belief and unbelief, from every race and nation. We pray for “all sorts and conditions of people.” It can, however” be difficult to communicate with people whose backgrounds and life experiences are so very different from ours.

Years ago, in the mid 1990’s in New Orleans, the Episcopal Churches in the metropolitan area formed a feeding ministry for transients, the “semi-homeless,” and the homeless. We filled in the one day a week not covered by other churches or organizations. One of our commitments was to eat with “our guests” as well as to serve them. This was sometimes a challenge because our current life situations were so different: after lunch most of the servers were going back to work or back home. We were going to pick up our children from school and coach their soccer teams; we would eventually go home to a warm house and a good meal and other evening activities.  Most of the people we served would go back out to the parks or the library or a fast food restaurant, any place to stay warm and dry and to pass the time away.

Yes, it is easier to welcome people into our assemblies whose backgrounds are similar to ours. But James is not talking about assemblies only. He is talking about welcoming people into the kingdom of God, of which our assembly is a part, an outpost, perhaps even a “Missionary Outpost.”  From yesterday’s reflections on Proverbs 22:1-2, I am reminded that “The rich and the poor have this (one very important thing) in common: the LORD is the maker of them all.”

With this in common, all differences can be overcome, but respected. In fact, we can learn from one another and our various life experiences, our successes and failures, our words and actions. Our faith will be stronger and as James tells us, “we will really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

Change, an Invitation to Life: The rich and the poor have this in common: the LOR...

Change, an Invitation to Life: The rich and the poor have this in common: the LOR...: Some Reflections on Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23 A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver o...

The rich and the poor have this in common: the LORD is the maker of them all.

Some Reflections on Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23

A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.
The rich and the poor have this in common: the LORD is the maker of them all.
Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of anger will fail.
Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor.

Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate;
for the LORD pleads their cause and despoils of life those who despoil them.

The first of three scripture readings for Sunday, September 6, all of which deal with not only how we treat other people, also who we see other people and distinguish them one from another.  This is one of those Sunday’s that is truly a “preacher’s nightmare.” How do, we preach the Gospel, the God News, of God about our responsibility to the poor and God’s judgment of us when we fail to do so, without, in the United States of seeming to preach one political party over another?

First, the preacher has to determine, as Jim Wallis of Sojourners Magazine states, “that God is not a Republican or a Democrat.  Next, having done our best to understand this, then we all, not just preachers, look at the second sentence of the above proverb:

            The Rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all.”

If the Lord indeed is the maker of all of us, then any injustice or bias we demonstrate toward the poor, because they are poor, any blaming of the poor for the economic problems of our society (yes, I know, politics again) or blaming them for being poor and hungry and unemployed demands more thought, prayer and study on our part.  I do remember that Roman Catholic Archbishop of El Salvador, Oscar Romero stated just before his assassination, that “when he fed the poor, people called him a Saint, and that when he asked why there were so many poor, people called him a communist.”

Our Lectionary Readings this week, beginning with this one from proverbs and including James 2:1-10, [11-13], 14-17 and Mark 7:24-37 will challenge both our understanding of politics and religion.  I will continue to share my thoughts with you and welcome your comments as I struggle with God’s call to us as creatures both rich and poor “who have all been made by the same Lord.”

 

Whatever does Jesus Mean, ‘Eat my flesh?’

Jesus said, "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. . . .Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.” (John 6:51-58)

What are we hearing in the Gospel of John, whatever was Jesus trying to communicate with these words?  Many of us in liturgical churches believe that this is a reference to the importance of the Eucharist in our lives and worship and the joining together with Christ and one another.  I certainly believe this is true but somehow I feel that Jesus was communicating more than just this.  Thanks to my friend, the Rev. Evan Garner, Rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Decatur for providing “food for thought.”

So, what does it mean to eat food?  According to Evan Garner, “food is substantive, it nourishes us, it delights us, and it unites us every single day.  If this is what normal food, normal bread, does then perhaps Jesus is suggesting that eating him (figuratively or metaphorically of course) has the same effect.  That “eating Jesus” sustains us, nourishes us, delights us and unites us every single day.

If this is the case, then the sustenance, nourishment, delight and unity that comes to us from this “eating” will give us the strength and energy to proclaim the kingdom of God which Jesus proclaimed and share this nourishment with those around us just as Jesus shared that same nourishment with us.  Two examples might help put flesh on these bones.

Last Saturday, August 15 was the 50^th anniversary celebration of Jonathan Daniels and the Martyrs of Alabama.  Jonathan Daniels, a 26 year old, white Episcopal Seminarian, was gunned down in Hayneville, Alabama after having been arrested for helping African Americans register to vote.  After a week in jail, Daniels, Roman Catholic Priest Richard Morrisroe and two black teenagers, Ruby Sales and Joyce Bailey, were released. As they entered Varners Cash Store for a soft drink, a shotgun wielding volunteer deputy sheriff shot at them, killing Daniels as he stepped in front of Ruby Sales, saving her life.

The Pilgrimage began on Friday evening with a talk at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Montgomery by Morris Dees, Jr, of the Southern Poverty Law Center.The Southern Poverty Law Center works for the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity are a reality.  On Saturday morning, young Episcopalians and young people from Lowndes County gathered for breakfast with the Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop Elect of the Episcopal Church.

                                                    

In memory of all of those who worked for justice, freedom and peace in the Civil Rights struggle, especially Daniels and the others who lost their lives, the participants walked from the square to the jail to the site of Varner’s Cash Store, where a historical marker was dedicated.  The procession then filed to the Lowndes County Court Room where Daniels’ Killer was tried and acquitted by an all white jury of men. A role of Civil Rights Martyrs was read. Holy Communion was celebrated from the Judges Bench turned Altar.

A few days before the Pilgrimage, the Board of the Episcopal Church Women of Alabama worshiped at Christ Church in Fairfield. Fairfield is an old steel mill town which has fallen on hard times since the closing down of the steel industry in the United States. (The following week, U.S. Steel announced the closing of the last mill in the area.) The purpose of the visit was to present a check from the National Episcopal Church Women for the building of a commercial grade kitchen in the old church building.  The importance of this kitchen to this Community is invaluable. During July and August  the women of Christ Church fed all reduced lunch school children five days a week Their goal for the new kitchen is to be able to feed all the community once a month, and open a food pantry. Currently they are feeding their parish members once a month.

The congregation is made up of “all sorts and conditions of people,” old and young, black and white, and mostly poor.  When the Presentation of a check for $36,400 dollars was made to pay for the new kitchen, you could have heard a pin drop in the otherwise lively worship service.  And then, all received Holy Communion, sustained, nourished, delighted and united by God so that they might sustain, nourish, delight an unite others.

As Jesus said, “my flesh is food indeed and my blood is drink indeed.  Yes, Holy Eucharist, but much, much more.  We, Gods people, like Jesus, have become food so that we might sustain, nourish, delight and unite God’s people every single day.

“Go Set a Watchman:” Some Reflections

I just finished reading Go Set a Watchman. Wow! A Very powerful book: fun, funny, tragic, sad, uplifting and hopeful.  I can understand why Harper Publishing did not want to publish it in the mid 1950’s and why Ms. Lee may not have wanted it published it either. 

It reveals the complexities of human beings, particularly of Southern human beings in the 1950’s, and I would go so far as to say, Southern human beings (of which I am one) in 2015.  The book Deals with real conflict between different classes of people as well as conflict among people of the same class. There are some real lessons on how to “get along,” a wonderful Southern characteristic, and also fight evil when “getting along goes too far.”

Class and racial and religious consciousness and conflicts are alive and well in 1955 just as much as they are today. In fact, this book could have just as easily been written in 2015 after Baltimore, Charleston, Chattanooga and the Supreme Court decision on Marriage equality.  Harper Lee may well have given us some tools to deal these issues today, just as Atticus, Scout, Dr. Jack, Alexandra and Hank dealt with them in the mid 1950’s.

Go Set A Watchman would make a great book study for a church group, a Sunday School Class or any group of citizens interested in a civil way to discuss legitimate differences between people of good will.

The Ku Klux Klan, Pastor Bob and Liberty and Justice for All

When I worked for the U.S. Forest Service in East Tennessee in the late 1960’s I attended the Methodist Church where Pastor Bob served as chief shepherd. It was a wonderful church and Pastor Bob and his family “adopted” me as a fourth son.  Years later when he and his wife visited us in New Orleans, he told us the story of his experience delivering the devotion at a Ku Klux Klan Rally, burning cross and all.

When Pastor Bob went home and told his wife that he had been invited to give the devotion at a KKK Rally, she said that “of course he wasn’t going to do it was he?” When he replied that “he believed he would” she responded with some very un-pastor’s comments, some of which suggested that he just might have taken leave of his senses.  Pastor Bob responded that he believed God was calling him to deliver a message to the Klan.  I leave the reader to decide who may or may not have been correct in their assessment of the situation.

On the given night, Pastor Bob drove to a designated location and was met by two men in Klan outfits with masks. He was blindfolded and rode with them up the mountain and turned off the paved road. The three men drove down the dirt road and stopped in a broad area where lots of other vehicles were parked.  Pastor Bob, still blindfolded walked with them men to the Rally area.  When his blindfold was removed he saw a huge crowd of men in sheets and masks. He was introduced by the leader as “Pastor Bob from the Methodist Church, who had come to bring them a devotion and a message from God.” 

Pastor Bob proceeded to tell the story of what he called “The Good Klansman.” As the story unfolded, “a black man was driving from Knoxville to Chattanooga when he was run off the road, beaten and robbed.  As he lay bleeding in the ditch behind his car, the local Baptist Pastor drove by, stopped, looked at the black man and said to himself, I just do not have time to stop and care for him. I am a busy man and must get to the spiritual retreat in Chattanooga.  Next the local Methodist pastor drove by, decided that he did not much care for black people and drove on.  At both of this incidents, the Klan members cheered and shouted, sharing their joy at the wisdom of the two pastors.”

Pastor Bob continued. “The next person to drive by was a Klansman on his way to this very rally.  When he saw the beaten, helpless man in the ditch, he stopped, took out a canteen of water and bathed the man’s wounds, gave him something to drink and bandaged his wounds.  The Klan members in attendance began to boo and yell and shout obscenities about the preacher and the Klansman who stopped.  As they got louder and louder, Pastor Bob shouted, ‘QUIET! HOW DARE YOU INTERUPT THE WORD OF GOD WHEN IT IS BEING PREACHED.” The crowd grew quiet and listened to the rest of the story of the ‘Good Klansman.’” The then re-blindfolded Pastor Bob, extinguished the fires in the circle, including the cross and silently left, leaving Pastor Bob alone in the middle of the East Tennessee Woods in the dark.

Pastor Bob removed the blindfold, but it was still too dark to see. He felt his way along the foot path to the dirt road, turned right and headed uphill toward the paved road. When he reached the paved road he walked a hundred yards to a pickup truck where sat a member of his congregation.  The man said, “howdy Pastor Bob, would you like a ride? Pastor Bob replied, “yes.” The two rode quietly into town to the church parking lot.  When Pastor Bob got out of the truck the both said, “good night, see you Sunday.”

Did Pastor Bob change any minds that night? Was he truly doing God’s work, or was he as crazy as his wife thought him to be? I do not have an answer to these questions, but I do know that he possessed the same courage Jesus possessed when he overturned the tables in the temple; the same courage Jesus had when he stood up the religious and political leaders of his day. Jesus stood up to the evil of his time and it cost him his life. Pastor Bob stood up to the evil of his time and lived to tell the story, but it could have cost him as much as it cost Jesus. 

In this story, Pastor Bob is for me a prophet.  His story inspires me to work for justice, freedom and peace for all of God’s people. To speak truth to power against all those who are enemies of the truth, whether they are the leaders of the state and nation, leaders of the church or those whose money give them more power than they deserve to have. There are those in the world who work to destroy God’s Kingdom and God’s people. Jesus, the Apostles and the Prophets, and Pastor Bob (who I truly believe is a prophet), and other modern day prophets show us how to live. Their example helps me to have the courage to stand up for those whom Jesus calls “the least of these my brothers and sisters.”

From Violence to Peace, the Building up of the Household of God

We human beings are tribal people. We love our own kind and stick together through thick and thin.  We often do this by pointing out that we are separate from the other, and most likely, better than the other as well.  In St. Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus, St. Paul reminds the Ephesian Christians that they were once different from the Jews; that they were without hope and without God. Now, however they have been brought together by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 2:11-22) 

Paul reminds the Jews as well as the Gentiles that they have been joined together by Jesus who is their peace.  Jesus, he declares, has broken down the dividing wall between them. That dividing wall is the hostility between them.  I want to take this idea from Paul and run with it, perhaps to the edge of what some might consider heresy.  I believe that the love of God which those of us who are Christians see in Jesus, can break down the dividing wall between not only Jews and Christians, but the walls between Muslims and Christians and Jews, between blacks and whites and browns, between rich and poor and yes, even between liberals and conservatives and everyone on the scale in between.

I believe Jesus’ life, death and resurrection is an act of God and therefore can defuse the hostility between groups of people who do not believe in him as well as groups of people who believe in him.  I believe St. Paul is correct that God can create one new humanity in place of two, and if God can do that, then God can create one new humanity in place of three or four or more.  As members of one human family we all have access to the Spirit of God and become members of the Household of God.  The Household of God does not exist just in heaven but exists first and foremost on Earth where we are all given gifts and talents to help build and strengthen this Household.

The Household of God is built, according to St. Paul, on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus, himself, being the Chief Cornerstone.” What a great foundation! If we stand on this foundation, we may well be able to see the whole world, not through human eyes, but through God’s eyes.  Continuing with this building metaphor, let’s build the first floor of this house on the late 18^th Century hymn, “In Christ there is no East or West.”

“In Christ there is no East or West, in him no South or North,

but one great fellowship of love throughout the whole wide earth.”

“Join hands, disciples of the faith, what’er your race may be!

Who serves my Father as a child is surely kin to me.”

As I reflected on Paul’s letter and this hymn, I reflected on how the world is and how it could be. I wish that I could get up to preach just one Sunday, and not have to preach on some violent act, some murder that has taken place in our world, as the result of the “horrible divisions between us which destroy the Household of God.  I am pleased this week that most people did not blame all Muslims for the attacks and murders committed by one man in Chattanooga, or blame all white people for the murders in a black church in Charleston. This would have been easy to do, but most refrained from doing so.

After tragedies exemplified by the two I have just mentioned, Christians and other people of good will are called on to do many things.  We are called on to grieve the loss of life. We are called to pray: to pray for the victims and their friends and family; to pray for the perpetrator (I hate it when scripture tells us that Jesus prayed on the cross for those who crucified him.)  And I believe we are called to pray for an end to the fear and hatred from some people of many different races, religions and organizations who influence individuals to committee such violent acts.

Our various faiths do not call or even allow us to hate. Even in the midst of grief we are called to defuse hate, not fuel the hate that is ubiquitous in our nation and our world.  We are called by the “Prince of Peace” to have conversations we would rather not have. We must talk about the issues of the day, even with those with whom we disagree.  We must talk about issues like the Confederate Battle flag and how it affects different people.  We must talk about the nuclear deal between Iran and five other nations. We must talk about equality of marriage.

And worst of all, or maybe best of all, we must be civil when we do so.  I cannot tell you how many times I have seen posts on Facebook that angered me, and my reaction was to go “type, type, type, delete, delete, delete.  If you are a Facebook friend of mine, I do not have to tell you the times I go “type, type, type, type, SEND! You have seen that. The times I have fueled hate rather than defused it.

Yes, there are many problems in the world.  But there are many good things as well. People of good will, people who are members of the household of God, together can work toward the elimination of the problems and the increase of those good things. We seek the truth where it may be found, we create safe places for dialogue, we defuse hate rather than fuel it and we lift up all those who work for justice, freedom and peace.

In the words of the old Sunday School Song: “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” Sounds like a good plan for us as well.

Prophets and Plumb Lines

God calls people to be prophets when we least expect it, when we have no interest in being a prophet and when we would rather be doing just about anything else. After all, most of us know what people say about prophets, what happens to prophets and that knowledge does not make for good recruiting propaganda.  

The eighth century BCE Prophet, Amos, was minding his own business, taking care of his father’s sheep and pruning Sycamore trees and the LORD took him from following the flock, and “the LORD said to him, Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'" I suspect Amos’ first thoughts were not, “cool, let’s do this.”   

Amos explained: “this is what the Lord God showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the LORD said to me, Amos, what do you see? And I said, a plumb line. Then the Lord said to Amos, 

See, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword." (Amos 7:7-15) 

And Amos went, and prophesied to the king and the people of Israel.  Holding the plumb line is what prophets do. They hold God’s message, God’s standard, up and allow us, or perhaps force us to compare our lives and actions to God’s message and actions.  The plumb line is always straight, it has to be, so if anything is off kilter it is the human being, or the society, or the church or other organization.  God’s plumb line helps us see what we are called to do and to be and gives us a chance to straighten up. Sometimes we do and sometimes we do not.

John the Baptist, a prophet, was arrested for holding a plumb line up for King Herod, telling him that it was not proper or right for him to marry his brother’s wife.  Herod was bothered by some of the things John said, but he was also intrigued by him. Although he did not want to put John to death, he had promised his wife’s daughter, Herodias, anything she wanted because he and his dinner guests were so pleased with her dancing for them. (Mark 6:14-29) 
 

Even though John had held a plumb line for Herod, Herod could not make himself bend to that line. Why not? He knew he did not want to keep the promise to Herodias, but he kept it anyway.  Why did Herod and why do we do things we do not want to do?  I believe it is our pride or our embarrassment.  We have made a promise in front of our friends. What will they think of us if we do not follow through?  Will they think us week, insincere, less manly or less womanly?  Will we lose power and control over others? Will we look weak? Herod saw the Plumb Line but he could not straighten up.
 

Prophecy calls us, summons us to change, it challenges our norms and seeks to awaken us to the presence of God in our lives and in the world. Prophecy can break through denial, and challenge norms and seek to awaken our hearts and minds.  Or, we can become reactionary, get our backs up and do all we can to justify ourselves. We then attack and dehumanize the prophet. We might even, in our reaction stand for things we have never stood for in the past just to prove that “no one can tell me what to do.”
 

Like Amos, the modern prophet holds the Plumb Line against us and our institutions, calling us to stand up straight against all that threatens the peace and unity of the human race.  When we hear the prophets and when we stand straight against the “crooked walls” we will seem out of line and may even be classified and condemned as prophets ourselves. As Flannery O’Connor said, “you shall know the truth and the truth will make you odd.”
 

Jesus left in his wake a trail of uneasy, intrigued and perplexed hearers.  I suspect there were some among them who knew that if they listened long enough, that he would bring them to a point of decision they would much rather avoid.  Prophets do that. 
 

The Bible, the Book of Common Prayer and the Holy Eucharist are some of our plumb lines today.  The Bible is not the end of God’s communication with us, but a beginning, a foundation. The Holy Spirit through today’s prophets will use these plumb lines to lead us and guide us into all truth, and to give us the courage to live into that truth through our actions.
 

I believe that if we listen to the words of scripture and engage fully with one another and with Jesus in the reception of Holy Communion that we too may be brought to a point of decision we would rather avoid. If we embrace Jesus’ message to “love our neighbor as ourselves, to do unto others as we would want them to do unto us,” folks might think us odd, but, we might just understand and help others to understand why some symbols we hold dear can hurt and frighten others; we might think twice about what we say, or write or post on social media.  We have the freedom to do and say what we please, but will that doing and saying build up, or tear down? As Saint Paul wrote, “do not for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for you to make others fall by what you eat.” (Romans 14:20)