Christmas Sermon 2013

To be preached at St. John's Lancaster tonight, God willing.

Isaiah 9:6-7

"...unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.  The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." (Isaiah 9:6-7)

On this blessed day, we gather in this sacred place to proclaim the truth of this prophesy of Isaiah.  A child was born in Bethlehem of Judah.  He was given to all of us by our loving heavenly Father that we might be forgiven of our sins, be restored to fellowship with God, be transformed into the kind of people the Bible teaches us to be, and at the end of our physical lives- live forever.

The prophesy continues.  The authority and the absolute right to rule still belong to him.  The divine right of kingship is his by God's eternal decree, and his character, his aptitude, and his basic skill set demonstrate to us the truth of his vocation.  The wonder of his divinity, combined with the humanity of his incarnation, what the church fathers at the Council of Chalcedon called "truly God and truly man," demonstrates God's love for you and me, and enables us to experience and know both his character and his expectations for our attitudes and behavior.  "And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

The wisdom of his words and his example, that "Holy Wisdom," qualify him as our greatest teacher, advisor, and guide.  He is in fact God incarnate, the second person of the holy and blessed Trinity, one with the everlasting Father, who shows us the way to peace. 

And today, in our hearts, that kingdom of peace flourishes and grows in direct proportion to our willingness to welcome and submit to his sovereign reign.  The decree of God insures us that this kingdom of peace will continue to grow in our hearts and in our relationships, whatever roadblocks Satan and his minions might establish.  There will be wars and rumors of wars.  Manipulation and coercion remain among us.  Heretics, well intentioned and otherwise, will redefine the clear teachings of Scripture and reject the wisdom and example of the historic faith received.  Human need will go unmet, and "the poor will be with us, always."  But for that man or woman who comes this night and welcomes Jesus into his or her heart, who realizes what it means to have his or her sins forgiven, and who embraces the new life that God the Father offers us through Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, the light floods into the darkness and peace ensues.  That peace grows and his kingdom takes hold of our lives, and no cancer, or divorce, or uncertainty, or habit, or attitude, or situation can extinguish the light or take it away.  Discouragement, or even despair, might come for a time, but God's grace is sufficient in the end for us to find peace and purpose in the most difficult of times.

And as people so transformed by God's grace come together to receive grace in the manner he has decreed, namely in Word and Sacrament, there is the Church, instituted of God not to pass resolutions and advance human agendas, but to build up and unify the people of God; to support and enable that peacefulness and sense of mission which will proclaim the way of Jesus Christ to all peoples.

And at the end of the day, or perhaps I should say "of the age," King Jesus will come again to claim his patrimony and to finally and fully establish his kingdom.  "Every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." (Philippians 2:10-11)  He will wipe away every tear from every eye,  and will do for us a new thing, (Revelation 21:4&5) and our peace, together with the peace of the world, will be forever and ever.

But how can this be?  There is so much pain and suffering and dysfunction, and sin and hatred and perversion in the world.  Well, I have it on good authority that "the zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this."  What I cannot do, what I have failed to do, he can manage because he is God.  I have seen it in the little things of my life, and I believe that they are granted to encourage me to expect that he is working and will continue to work in the great things of life.  The moments of peace, the experiences of light in the darkness, the evidences of changed lives and guilt assuaged- these are "the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1)

Do you believe this night that the child we come to worship can bring you such peace?  Do you believe that "the zeal of the Lord of hosts" can bring order, and peace, and hope, and strength, and purpose to your situation?  Then stand and confess with me your acceptance of that faith we have received.  Bring your needs and current realities to God in prayer.  Ask him to forgive your sins.  Purpose to make restitution to those you have wronged.  And accept the grace, the transforming power, that God offers you through his church by humbly partaking of the body and blood of Jesus Christ in Holy Communion.  Make this Christmas the start of a new life, and experience afresh the endless opportunities that God has in store for you.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  Amen.

Civility and Protocol: The Marks of Civilization and Humanity

Thanksgiving at Briarwood

Some years ago, Rebecca and I decided to get rid of our everyday tableware and start using the good dishes every day.  We don't always dine as these two photos might imply, but we do try to sit down and make dining and family an event whenever we can. 

Breakfast the Next Day

In a world given over to convenience and efficiency, it is easy to lose sight of the finer things of life, things like friendship, laughter, and dignity.  They ennoble us, and call us to remember that there is more to life, and to relationships, than getting things done and accomplishing tasks in the order they appear.  Graciousness and beauty are too often forgotten in the way we treat ourselves and those closest to us.  The upshot is that our society becomes degraded and our culture becomes more harsh and barbaric.  It often breaks my heart to see and read of how we humans treat each other.  If the news reports and my perceptions of my own anecdotal experiences are even close to being accurate, there is a very thin line between civilization and barbarism, and we humans cross that line with disturbing frequency. 

But there is a response that provides at least a partial remedy.  Get out the good china.  Dress for dinner.  Linger over your dessert and coffee.  And enjoy the people who grace your table.  It will not end war or curtail drug abuse, but it will uplift you, and bring you closer to the people you love.

The Cost of Unconfessed Sin

Rector's Rambling: January, 2014

It was dark last night when I arrived home from the church.  There was enough light to give the snow whitened landscape an eerie look.  As I proceeded to clear the walks and attend to my evening chores, I could hear the plaintive yip of the coyotes down at the base of the hill.  Such evenings produce an almost Poe-like morbidity in my outlook.  Over the years, I've learned not to waste such a moment, and so I settled in to watch Paul Almond's 1961 Macbeth, with Sean Connery as the ill-fated lead, and Zoe Caldwell as his evil, and yet all too familiar wife. 

Sean Connery and Zoe Caldwell in Paul Almond's 1961 Macbeth

Macbeth always makes me think about the consequences of human decisions to sin by taking things into our own hands, instead of waiting to see the wondrous things that God has in store for us.  I suppose as partial definitions of sin go, that is as good as any, "to have it our way, without reference to the plan that God might have for our lives."  The stark and grainy nature of Almond's black and white production forces the viewer to concentrate on the power of Shakespeare's language, and allows one to avoid the distractions of special effects, costume, or set.  Perhaps that is the best way to approach sin and all of its attendant consequences.  Directness and honesty keep us on task, and call us to realize that perhaps the greatest New Year's resolution of all is to see to the salvation of our own souls by allowing God's grace and mercy to break the power of sin in our lives. 

And that brings me to the point of this ramble.  Is there hidden and un-confessed sin in your life that threatens to devour you?  It will, you know.  While bold strokes to win great temporal prizes might seem like a good idea in the short term, they ultimately fill us with a sense of guilt that is as consuming as that of lady Macbeth, or with a realization of distrust like the Thane's as we come to assume that everyone else is as duplicitous and self-serving as we have been.  It is no way to live, and it sets us on a road to eternal destruction.

But the good news of Christmas is that "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us..." and therefore we can know God's forgiveness and cleansing and peace.  We can rise above the bad choices of our past and feel clean as the wind driven snow.  Indeed, at the point of our forgiveness, a loving Father, through the work of the Son, sends us the witness of the Holy Ghost that we might find healing and peace as we receive that forgiveness that only God is able to give.

If you struggle with the consequences of past decisions, I would invite you to receive God's healing forgiveness at the beginning of this new year.  Sometimes it helps to verbalize your sin in the presence of another person.  I am available to hear sacramental confessions at a time convenient to you.  If I am a little close to home for that in your mind, other priests in the area would be available.  I can provide their numbers, or they are available on the Diocesan website.  If you absolutely do not feel comfortable confessing to a priest, remember that Jesus is our great high priest, and he is the only mediator between us and the Father.  Talk to him directly in prayer.  Tell him what you have done to the best of your remembrance, and ask him to forgive you and to give you strength not to do such things again.  He will hear your prayer.  He will forgive your sins.  And he will lift the burden of your guilt and put you on the road to healing in this life and heaven in the world to come.  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, One God.  AMEN.

A Response to the Pilling Report

A godly man and a true prophet: Archbishop Wabukala

 

Chairman’s Advent Letter

To the Faithful of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans and friends
from Archbishop Eliud Wabukala, Primate of Kenya
and Chairman of the GAFCON Primates’ Council
Advent  2013

Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord! Psalm 31:24
My dear brothers and sisters,
Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
I am so thankful to the Lord for his goodness to us as we met here in Nairobi for GAFCON 2013. It was a great gathering in which we saw unmistakable signs of God’s blessing. Our expectations were exceeded in many ways as 1,358 delegates from 37 nations gathered for what I can only describe as a foretaste of heaven. My prayer was that we would see the glory of God and we did as we enjoyed a wonderful time of worship, prophetic bible teaching and mutual encouragement.  It was truly a mountain top experience in which the Lord Jesus was gloriously present, but we knew we could not stay there. We have to come down from the mountain to face the challenges ahead.
And so we have. The Church of England has just released what is known as the Pilling Report, the conclusions of a Working Group commissioned by the House of Bishops to report and make recommendations on issues of human sexuality. I am sorry to say that it is very flawed. If this report is accepted I have no doubt that the Church of England, the Mother Church of the Communion, will have made a fateful decision. It will have chosen the same path as The Episcopal Church of the United States and the Anglican Church of Canada with all the heartbreak and division that will bring.
The problem is not simply that the Report proposes that parish churches should be free to hold public services for the blessing of homosexual relationships, but the way it justifies this proposal. Against the principle of Anglican teaching, right up to and beyond the Lambeth Conference of 1998, it questions the possibility that the Church can speak confidently on the basis of biblical authority and sees its teaching as essentially provisional. So Resolution 1.10 of the 1998 Lambeth conference, which affirmed that homosexual practice was ‘incompatible with Scripture’ and said it could ‘not advise the legitimisation or blessing of same sex relationships’, is undermined both in practice and in principle.
The proposal to allow public services for the blessing of same sex relationships is seen as a provisional measure and the Report recommends a two-year process of ‘facilitated conversation’ throughout the Church of England which is likened to the ‘Continuing Indaba’ project. This should be a warning to us because it highlights that the unspoken assumption of Anglican Indaba is that the voice of Scripture is not clear. This amounts to a rejection of the conviction expressed in the Thirty-nine Articles that the Bible as ‘God’s Word written’ is a clear and effective standard for faith and conduct.
As a matter of conscience, one member of the Working Group, the Rt Rev’d Keith Sinclair, Bishop of Birkenhead, was unable to sign the Report. He issued a dissenting statement which I strongly endorse as an alternative way forward which honours the authority of Scripture and expresses a deep pastoral concern for the transforming power of the gospel in a society which is moving into ever greater confusion about sexual morality and identity.
We should pray earnestly that the English House of Bishops steps back from endorsing this Report, but the developing situation in the Church of England, the historic Mother Church of the Communion, underlines the need for our Global Fellowship to build on the success of GAFCON 2013 and implement our commitments.  As we noted in the Nairobi  Communiqué, the GFCA is becoming an ‘ important and effective instrument of Communion during a period in which other instruments of Communion have failed both to uphold gospel priorities in the Church, and to heal the divisions among us.’
As Chairman I am committed to seeing our vital work of promoting and defending the gospel expand. During the coming year we shall be working to increase our organizational effectiveness, set up global networks and improve our communications, but we also need the involvement of every member in prayer, giving and active engagement with our global vision. We are at heart a spiritual movement of renewal, looking to the Lord who graciously revives his Church and this is a reality that flows out of the daily discipleship of each one.
I write with deep gratitude to you all for your prayer and fellowship in this great project which the Lord has called us. This Advent Season is a reminder to live as those who are ready for the Lord’s return in power and glory, as Saviour and as Judge.  So let us be of good hope, confident in the ultimate triumph of God’s purposes in Jesus Christ.
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word (2 Thess. 2:16,17).
The Most Rev Dr Eliud Wabukala
Primate of Kenya and Chairman of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans

Posted December 7, 2013

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Ecumenical Thanksgiving Devotional

With many thanks to Nick England, who will preach this sermon for me at Tuesday night's Ecumenical Thanksgiving Service at St. Mark's Catholic Church here in Lancaster.

Norman Rockwell's iconic Thanksgiving

 

I am thankful tonight for many things: for my family and my friends, for the blessings of living at peace in a country where freedoms abound, for having enough to eat and a warm place to sleep, for security and relative peace, at least in my immediate environs. I am thankful for Fairfield Medical Center and for Fairhope Hospice. I am thankful for Lancaster's band of Gold and for the education my children received in the Lancaster City Schools and at St. Mary's and Fisher. I am thankful that we still have an agricultural county fair with horses and rabbits and children doing good things. I am thankful for dogs and shotguns and land to roam.  I am thankful for many things, and I'm sure all of you could add to my list. There are so many blessings in our lives.

But there is another thing that I am most thankful for. I am thankful that God the Father loved me so much that he sent Jesus to die and be resurrected so that I might be reconciled to God, have the hope of heaven, and find the strength of the Holy Ghost to live a life that is much better than I could ever have pulled off on my own. In the old Episcopal service of Holy Communion, the wonder of God's provision for us is expressed in a series of Scripture quotes we often call “the comfy words.” I would like to read them for you tonight, because they are timeless reminders of God's love for you and for me.

“ Hear what comfortable words our Saviour Christ saith unto all that truly turn to him.

OME unto me all that travail and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you. St. Matth. xi. 28.
    So God loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, to the end that all that believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. St. John iii. 16

Hear also what Saint Paul saith.

    This is a true saying, and worthy of all men to be received, That Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. 1 Tim. i. 15.

Hear also what Saint John saith.

    If any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins. 1 St. John ii. 1.”

In 1922, Rhea F. Miller wrote a gospel song which is one of the greatest thanksgiving prayers I've ever heard. I won't attempt to sing it tonight, but I imagine many of you have heard thesse words:

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold; I’d rather be His than have riches untold; I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands; I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand Refrain: Than to be the king of a vast domain And be held in sin’s dread sway; I’d rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today. I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause; I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause; I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame; I’d rather be true to His holy name He’s fairer than lilies of rarest bloom; He’s sweeter than honey from out the comb; He’s all that my hungering spirit needs; I’d rather have Jesus and let Him lead

On this thanksgiving day, I will take time out from the family traditions and celebrations to remember those specific things for which I am thankful. I'll think of those who have gone before me, of the institutions that have brought me prosperity, peace, and security. I'll think of those who are alone and far away in this season that I might be free. I'll remember and give thanks for the manifold blessings in my life. But most of all, I'll think of Jesus, my Lord and my Saviour, my brother and my friend, and I will thank the Father that he has called me and set me apart as one of his own. And with that prayer, I'll ask God to give me his strength to live a better life in this coming year as I strive to love him with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and my neighbors as myself. I invite all of you to give thanks and to join me in this commitment and in this prayer. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN.

Musings On a Rainy Day: The Wanderings of a Fevered and Bitterly Disappointed Mind!

south and east views from Briarwood on a rainy winter day

Oscar and I were to have hunted pigeon and rabbit today, but the weather is miserable, and winter is upon us with a vengeance.  And so after some early morning chores at the barn and in town, I sat down with a cup of tea and my Kindle to read a few passages from long neglected books and magazines.  Days like this have always put me in a rather pensive mood, and used to call forth listening to Beethoven, reading Byron, and caressing a bit of cognac or brandy.  But now it is silence, Earl Grey tea, and things I meant to read a long time ago. 

Rebecca and I have long discussed where we might attend worship after my retirement.  Arguably, the evangelical churches have the best preachers, but we would miss the liturgy and sacrament.  While several members of our family are Roman, I could never get by the dogmas promulgated in the 19th century or the presuppositions of magisterium as a concept, ...and as a non-member, I would not be able to receive Communion.  And besides, my experience of most Roman Catholic preaching is that it tends to not be expository, and is therefore generally suspect in my eyes (although I can cite some notable exceptions!).  The same sort of things hold true for Orthodoxy.  While I find Orthodoxy's theology more derivative from Scripture than that of Rome, I always feel like a welcome and honoured guest rather than like a member of the family.  And their positions on Sacraments are like those of Rome.  Some would ask why I don't just find another Episcopal or Anglican Church and go there.  The blend of liberal politics, acceptance of sexual immorality (both homosexual and heterosexual), and the effective universalism in many Episcopal Churches distracts me from focusing on God, and to attend an Anglican parish with regularity given the current state of affairs between The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church in North America would in my opinion send unhelpful signals to people who look to me for spiritual example and leadership, and would seem to be a rather backhanded slap at my bishop, to whom I am bound to give fealty, and who is after all a decent man who has enough headaches without me creating more for him. 

And all of this brings me to the "Diary of John Evelyn," who lived during the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell, and found his religion no longer fit the mood of the nation.  On 3rd December (1654) he wrote, "Advent Sunday.  There being no Office at the church but extemporary prayers after the Presbyterian way, for now all forms were prohibited, and most of the preachers were usurpers, I seldom went to church upon solemn feasts; but, either went to London, where some of the orthodox sequestered Divines did privately use the Common Prayer, administered sacraments, &c., or else I procured one to officiate in my house; wherefore on the 10th, Dr. Richard Owen, the sequestered minister of Eltham, preached to my family in my library, and gave us the holy Communion." 

And so I wonder, on this blustery and chilling day, if we are indeed in a new interregnum as one age passes to the next.  I have no answers, and hopefully will not need one for a few years to come, but days such as this do call me to deep thoughts of very serious things.

My second reverie grew out of Anthony Esolen's article "Illuminations" in the October 26th issue of "Touchstone."  He writes, "C.S. Lewis suggests that the flames of hell are how the wicked experience the glory of Paradise, for God is the Selfsame, and should we descend into the pit, yet is he there.  The fault lies not in the glory, but in the wicked."  He continues after some illustration, "So in the dark night of Advent we await the coming of the true light that enlightens every man; yet we should remember that light is like cool, refreshing waters for those who love the light, and like the glare of an enemy to those who hate it."  Could this be why so many in our world today seem to intent on opposing the work of Jesus Christ in the world?  Certainly it is worth considering, and if it is true, perhaps it is an indication that even in the midst of the darkness, we ought to remember that God is doing a great thing.  Gods who are not a threat to the enemies of truth seldom provoke violent reactions, because their private worship which has no public consequences are not an inconvenience to anyone.

And finally, my thoughts on this day grow out of a report by Dave Nomsan in the Winter 2014 issue of "Pheasants Forever: A Journal of Upland Conservation."  Even a partisan (an evenhanded one at least) must come close to acknowledging that the antics of the United States government in all of her forms and in all of her parties and interest groups, has been a disgrace over the last few weeks and months.  Nomsan, who is Vice President for Governmental affairs for Pheasants Forever, was working on the conservation aspects of the pending Farm Bill when he realized that the government shutdown would have serious ramifications "limiting hunting access on public lands", and especially to those purchased for conservation by private funds from hunters and conservationists through the sale of Duck Stamps, the 26,000 Waterfowl Protection Areas, or WPAs.  He continues, "As preposterous as it sounded, the federal government had closed public WPAs despite there not being any gates, locks, or staff necessary to keep them open- and all of this during the peak of duck hunting season and on the eve of many state pheasant openers."   Needless to say, the federal government's apparent disregard for the health of upland and wetland habitat, of which scientifically planned harvest seasons are an important part, disgusts this writer.  It also causes me to imagine if the time has not come for a careful consideration of the kind of folks we elect to govern our nation.  Please take this as a denunciation of candidates from both major parties, and not as an attack on one branch or one party.  This is too wonderful a place to allow anyone to throw it away or to destroy it for any reason.  I suppose that is the rant portion of my musing today. 

Can we go hunting yet Dad?

Hopefully this will give you a bit of an insight into the workings of an idle mind.  It can be a very scary place.  I think I'll leave it and see if it is too wet to hunt this afternoon.

And oh by the way, the views expressed here are strictly personal and should not be held against any institution or anyone but me!

Rector's Rambling: Christmas

Rector's Rambling: December 2013

The passing of Thanksgiving and the coming of Advent calls us to prepare our hearts for the birth of Baby Jesus, who is the Christ, our King and our Lord. He is the agent of creation, and in him we live and move and have our being. He brings us salvation and peace with the Father, and offers us that transformation which puts away our guilt and shame. He fulfills the prophesies and makes it possible for us to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and to live with the very power of God as we seek to follow him in humility and obedience every day of our lives. Beneath the beauty of this holy season lies the foundational truth that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The truth of Christmas is an historical truth, not an allegory or a profound work of fiction. It is reality! “So God loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoso believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” There are those who would downplay the centrality of this truth, and what a sad thing it is that they replace the truth of God's deliverance with traditions of warmth and beauty and peaceful sentiments, for without the reality of the living Christ, all of our beautiful traditions are merely distractions and half truths which delude us into sentimentality and self-satisfaction.

In this wondrous season of the year, I pray from the bottom of my heart that we might embrace the reality that God the Only Begotten, the second person of the Holy and Glorious Trinity, did indeed come into the world physically and in fulfillment of the prophesies in order to accomplish the Father's will in this wonderful world he created to his own glory. Like the wise men before us, might we seek him who came to save us from the ravages of sin. Like Blessed Mary the God Bearer, might we offer ourselves unconditionally in the service of her Son. Like Blessed Joseph, might we commit ourselves to nurture and serve the Holy Child and his Mother, who is perhaps the embodiment of our common humanity. And like the shepherds, might we kneel in wonder before the mercies of God usward, for indeed his provision for all our needs is sure, and his love for us is everlasting. Through Christ our Saviour. AMEN.

A day of Refreshment in a week of Discouragement

The last couple of days have been magical.  Daughter Ashley brought the children for an overnighter at Briarwood, also known as "Grammy's House."  It was a time filled with horses and play and pizza and movie night, and more horses, and all of the wonderful fantasies two happy little girls could muster. (Little George at this point is more interested in eating dog food and playing with electrical cords than in experiencing wonder of any kind!) Rebecca and Ashley managed to get the spinning wheel working and started on the first crop of Scottish Blackface wool from Dayspring Farm. Here are a few pictures of the event.



playing horses

the real thing

and more!

Momma with Little Princess, her retired hunter jumper

Spinning the first wool from the Canter's flock of Scottish Blackface Sheep

Lunch!

Playing St. Michael in the Briarwood Chapel

I thank God for times like this.  The last couple of weeks have been very stressful.  Diocesan Convention, interactions with several colleagues, and the recent political infightings in our country have conspired to remind me of how much of the old order has passed, and of how little I like that which currently holds sway in this great and wide world of ours.  Added to some very difficult administrative decisions of late, it has all made me very tired emotionally and spiritually.  But when I look into the eyes of my grandchildren, and when I survey the wonder that is all around me, I feel refreshed and renewed...ready to face the morrow.  And so I close with a snapshot of Little Princess and Oscar, whose presence reminds me that all is not concrete and asphalt, and that there is still beauty defined by function and nature; beauty which participates in and grows from that which we have all known instinctively from the beginning; that which is unchanging and in which we see the very face of God.

As God shows forth his character and person in the wonder and purpose of creation, so he shows us the fullness of his glory in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, of whom the Holy Bible is the sure and verified record.
To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

The Joy of Living

Hoppe's iconic #9

Today started early (at about 6:45 AM) with two services of Holy Communion and a class on the Exodus by noon, then lunch with Rebecca at Four Reasons, phone calls, a Communion distribution at a local nursing home, a visit to my failing mother, and a seminar at the church.  When I arrived home at about 7:30 PM, Oscar was delighted to see me.  Accompanied by Quincy and Rawley, we went to the barn to look after Princess, Ashley's horse, and the birds.  And then it was back to the shop to pick up shotguns for cleaning and a bit of maintenance.  And that is when Oscar, the Spaniel, came to life.  The sight of uncased guns, the smell of powder, and the intoxicating odor of Hoppes #9 was like an on switch to my little black dog.  He ran and barked and galumphed with all of the joy he could muster... and he did not stop until the guns were cleaned, adjusted, and locked in the safe. 

Winchester's fabled Model 12

He and Rawley are now asleep on my feet.  Quincy, who does not like guns at all, has retired to the loft.  And here I sit thinking about what it is that brings me the joy I witnessed in my dog tonight.  I've still not come up with an answer, but I will continue to work on the question in the days to come.  Such absolute joy and perfect happiness borne of anticipation must be filled with innocence and certainly is as  without guile as blessed Nathaniel.  I'll spend a few days on this, and hopefully, by God's grace I will find the key to knowing such absolute happiness this side of heaven.

Stoeger's sturdy workhorse, the Uplander

Rector's Rambling for November, 2013

November is upon us. The month starts with All Saint's Day (and I encourage everyone to send the Names of those departed Christians you would like us to remember at the Altar on Sunday the 3^rd to the Parish office at <office@stjohnlancaster.org> ,) and continues with the upland and waterfowl seasons in full swing as we make our way to Thanksgiving (which by the way is NOT a Church holiday.) We will celebrate Thanksgiving again this year with our friends at Sixth Avenue United Methodist Church and St. Mark's Roman Catholic Church at 7 PM on Tuesday the 26th at St. Marks. In between the two great celebrations of family and community fall the commemorations of several of my favorite people.

Richard Hooker, 3 November +1600

Hooker was an Anglican Apologist who defended the via media, or middle way, between Puritanism and Roman Catholicism, and whose book Ecclesiastical Polity demonstrated that Anglicanism is both catholic and reformed, and is firmly rooted in both scripture and tradition.

Willibrord of York, Archbishop of Utrecht and Apostle of Frisia, 7 November +739

Alcuin wrote that he was “venerable, gracious, and full of joy,” and that his ministry was “based on energetic preaching informed by prayer and sacred reading. His mission brought Christianity to the peoples of the low countries and Germany.

Leo the Great, Bishop of Rome, 10 November +461

Leo's Treatise on Pastoral Care was formative in my development as a priest. What a shame it is no longer required reading in the seminaries.

Martin of Tours, Soldier, Monk, and Bishop, 11 November +397

Martin was a Roman soldier who left the army and founded a rural monastery after sensing a conflict between his military duties and his faith. Perhaps his best known act of compassion was giving half of his Army issue uniform cloak to a beggar, and receiving Christ's blessing for his mercy. He was one of the first to bring Christianity to the rural people of what is now France. A soldier and a country boy- it doesn't get much more inspiring than that!

Queen Margaret of Scotland, 16 November +1093

She was a woman of prayer and good to the poor. She seemed to influence all those around her for good, and is considered to have brought holiness and civilization to the court of Malcolm III.

Edmund of East Anglia, King and Martyr, 20 November +870

Loved by his subjects because he cared for the poor and suppressed wrong doing in his dominions, he was tied to a tree, shot with arrows, and beheaded by the Danes because he refused to renounce Jesus Christ and his responsibility to the people of his kingdom.

Isaac Watts, 25 November +1748

His hymns filled my boyhood and I love them even today.

When I survey the wondrous cross,

On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.

I hope that this traditional month for remembrance, family, and the hunt will call us all to remember the blessings God has given us by giving us each other. AMEN!

Sermon for RCL 24 C, Luke 8:1-3

Sermon for the XXII Sunday after Pentecost, RCL 24C

To be preached at St. John's Lancaster on 20 Oct 2013, God willing.

Luke 8: 1-3

Jesus with his followers on the road in Galilee
Does anyone know what film this shot is from?

Most of us here have been in church for a long time, and we have heard the explanation of this parable of the seed several, if not many times. And so today, I have elected to look at the brief prologue to this parable of Jesus. In it, we see the purpose of Jesus as he traveled on this earth, “to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God.” That immediately raises the question, exactly what is the “Good News of the Kingdom of God?” To answer that question properly, we need to travel back to the beginning of human history. God, in his beneficent mercy and love, created the heavens and the earth and all that is in them and declared them to be good. He then created us in his image with reason, and freewill, and the ability to give and receive love, that we might have purpose as the stewards of the garden which is this earthly paradise. The Scriptures tell us that in those early days, he walked with our ancestors in the garden and communed with them directly. But then the most terrible thing happened. Following the example of those angels who had rebelled against God, and at the instigation of their leader, our grandmother Eve and our grandfather Adam succumbed to temptation and partook of the forbidden fruit. Their decision to rebel by believing that their way was better than God's way set the stage for tragedies unforeseen and broke their direct fellowship with God. When God pronounced the consequences of their actions to the players involved, he promised Eve that one day one would be born of her seed who would destroy the power of the tempter and overcome death itself to restore us to full fellowship with God. The Bible in another place calls him “the second Adam,” who will restore our species to God's original plan and purpose, banish death forever, and restore the paradise that was. Over the centuries prophets, inspired by God, spoke of the one who was to come and accomplish these wonderful things. It was not only the prophets of the Jews who heard this truth of the deliverer. Pagans, and philosophers of other nations, like the Magi of Christ's birth narratives, discerned through the revelation contained in the design of nature and in the yearnings which led to their own myths and legends and understandings that God in his love would give all people the opportunity to be restored to him. Finally, St. John the forerunner, the cousin of Jesus Ben Joseph, inspired by God the Holy Spirit, declared that the Kingdom of God was at hand as he declared “Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sin of the world! Repent, and be baptized for the remission of sins, for the Kingdom of Heaven is come!” That in a nutshell is the Good News. The prophesies are fulfilled, The deliverer has come, and we proclaim deliverance to those held captive in those illnesses and behaviours, and addictions, and habits, and systems which are contrary to God's way in Paradise. The Kingdom is come, and Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy and Blessed Trinity, is the means by which God has brought this deliverance, this reinstatement with God, this salvation into the world.

At this point, we must insert a caveat, “let the buyer beware.” The Good News of the kingdom of God is a conscious and rational belief and affirmation of the fact that God the Father, the first person of the Holy and Blessed Trinity, rebooted all of time and history by sending Jesus, the second person of the Holy and Blessed Trinity, to live and die and be resurrected as a real live human being, joining in a mystical but real way the divine and human, that our sins might be washed away and we might stand justified before God through the efficacy of his own promises and love. The evidence of this transformation is demonstrated to all who will put aside their presuppositions and rebellious attitudes and ways and will see the difference this truth has made as the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Holy and Blessed Trinity, maintains and inspires and enables those who have received this wondrous Good News to live as the Children of God. There are those among us in the modern church, and they are many, who downplay, redefine, or even deny the theological and historical truth that is the Good News of the Kingdom of God. They substitute for it those good works which necessarily flow from the transformation we experience when we acknowledge the truth of the Good News and confess and forsake our sins, purposing to live our lives in accordance with Biblical teachings. They do accomplish many good things, but they fundamentally redefine the nature of our Faith, and they deny the historic proclamation of the Good News of the Kingdom of God. Flee their teachings as you would a fire or an act of senseless violence. Their message seems so benign, because it is cloaked in good works, but the ultimate impact of their teaching is eternal, because it fundamentally denies the role of Christ in our salvation and bypasses the revealed truth of Scripture.

With the “Good News” identified, and the caveat explained, I think it is instructive to look at the examples of the people who traveled with Jesus that day. In their lives and in the choices they made, they give us some idea of how we might, indeed how we ought to do evangelism.

1. The proof of their message was in their transformed lives. St. Luke tells us that several of them had been set free from evil spirits and infirmities. Like so many others throughout history, people who had known them in earlier days noticed a change that could not be accounted for apart from God's touch. Their behaviour and the difference in their new lives gave credence to their message. Does the constancy and holiness of your life prove the reality of God's transforming love?

2. They proclaimed the “Good News” wherever they went, and were not ashamed to be identified with Jesus. Are you and I willing to do as much? I'm not talking here about the right to wear a t-shirt or a piece of jewelry, or to have a poster in my cubicle, although those things could be construed to be a part of this. I am talking about a sense of morality, of right and wrong, which stands up to selfish comments or control oriented behaviour in family, social, or business relationships. I think of a willingness to be the odd man or woman out when you stand against cruel humor presented at the expense of those who cannot defend themselves. I think of the willingness to say, “I cannot participate in that program or course of action because it conflicts with my faith,” whatever the personal cost may be. I think of the determination to do what is right and just, remembering that in Hebrew theology those two concepts are flip sides of the same coin. I think of that quiet witness as I make the sign of the cross in a restaurant and bow my head for prayer, or calmly read my Bible on an airplane or in a park. I think of taking the time to commit my own transformation at God's hand into a rational and communicable form, and my willingness to share with others what the Father has done for me through Jesus the Son in the power of the Holy Ghost.  Are you willing to be identified as a sibling of Jesus, wherever you go?

3. They supported Jesus and his ministry with their resources. Certainly money was a part of that. It takes money to take a crowd of two or three dozen people on a multi-day walking tour of the Holy Land, or of anyplace else. But they also gave of their time, and their energy, and their influence. Am I, are you, willing to back up your words with money, to donate your time and talent, to invest your emotional and intellectual energy, and to expend your influence, to spend down your quid-pro-quo resources, so that all people might hear the “Good News of the Kingdom of God?” Funding good works, which necessarily flow from the Good News is a part of this, but are you willing to fund and staff getting out the story that “God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life?” Good works are necessary, and we are called to support them, but we must always remember that it is the message of God's love and grace which transforms and delivers us from sin. The good works follow. Do you support those missions and agencies which proclaim that “Good News” to those who have not yet acknowledged Jesus as Saviour and Lord?

That pretty much covers the prologue for today. I hope it has given you some things to think about, to pray about, and to act upon. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN.
 

Shelling Beans

I am off this morning for Columbus Day, so I decided to get on with some of the fall garden chores.  The terriers were down in the woods doing what terriers do, so Oscar and I moseyed up to the barn, and after turning out Princess and the girls, applied ourselves to picking through the overgrown jungle that is a late season garden looking for beans.  Some of them were planted for winter soup, and others just got past their prime or were missed on earlier pickings.  A few were just left to dry after everyone I know got tired of eating green beans.  Today was the first pass at harvesting them.  It is a mindless task, but I've always found it relaxing.  There are so many varieties, and they all have their own story.  My favorite variety is a small black bean often called "Trail of Tears", because according to legend, the Cherokee brought it with them from the Carolinas to Oklahoma and Kansas.  If our family histories are anywhere near accurate, some of my folks were on that trip.  But there are the prolific and relatively newer varieties like Kentucky Wonder, and even beans that are reputed to have come to the new world on the Mayflower.  Others supposedly kept Irish farmhands alive during the great famine.  There are as many stories as there are varieties, and as many colors and patterns as one can imagine!

I suppose the best thing about shelling beans is that it gives one time to think.  Time seems to vanish and run into eternity as the bottom of the empty Tupperware container slowly disappears beneath the shining promise of winter soups.  There is time for God, and for old friends nearly forgotten, and for pondering that which is truly important in life.  So if you've never grown beans, I certainly recommend it.  They can be somewhat ignored and still be prolific.  Delicious when young, meaty when middle aged, and hearty when dried for soups or frying, they are easy to grow, satisfying to see, and are always welcome to grace my table.  If your back is old like mine, get the climbers.  They are the easiest to pick.  And in case you hadn't guessed already, Oscar really wasn't much help, but it is always good to spend time with a friend.

Jim Karlovec's English Cocker Spaniels

Oscar (in left foreground under mirror) after the shoot at Federal Valley near Amesville, Ohio

I've noticed several queries on my blog tracker of late for "Jim Karlovec's English Cocker Spaniels, and so I thought I'd post a report on Oscar's progress. Yesterday, we took Leo the Lab  and Oscar the eight month old Cocker to Federal Valley for a shoot (his second at that location.)  Oscar is bold and biddable, and isn't afraid of brush at all.  It was warm yesterday, and he got into some tall grass early. As a result, he found birds well but didn't have the steam to get a full sized farm raised bird all the way back to hand without some coaxing (he had no trouble on an earlier shoot at the same location.)  That was my fault and not his.  We shot three marked birds for him and he found them all quickly, marked them well, and went straight to where they fell.  He had been playing with feathered bumpers a bit on retrieves during drills, but did not chew up the birds at all on this shoot. 

Last week, I had him on the streams at a local state park and he did a great job in the water when we flushed wood duck walking up the stream.  If the season had been in, we would have eaten duck that night.  He handles full sized Dokken dummies well in water and on land, and has retrieved hen pheasants, doves, and pigeon cleanly to hand. 

He is very sociable and gets on well with other dogs and people.  He quarters naturally, will retrieve left and right, or forward and to the side to placed feathered bumpers and bring the first back before waiting to be sent for the second.  He hunts close and fast.  He hups to voice, whistle, and hand sign, and recalls to whistle and hand sign.  He learns quickly, and I don't anticipate any real trouble getting him to hup to shot and flush.  He is very birdy, and loves to pick up the odd rabbit as well.

Oscar on the back porch

If anyone is looking for an English Cocker Spaniel, I would highly recommend Jim Karlovec's dogs from Flushing Star Kennel  http://www.flushingstar.com/.  Oscar is a joy in the house and works well in the field.  I'm looking forward to many great hunts with this little guy.  Oh yes, I took Oscar up to Jim for about a month and a half to get ready for his first season, and Jim is a great help when it comes to answering questions about Oscar's ongoing training and working the dog. 

Sermon for Proper 21C Revised Common Lectionary; Jeremiah 29:1-9

To be Preached at St. John's Lancaster on October 13th, 2013, God willing.

Looking to the Future!

A couple of weeks ago, I was looking through an old year book. The categories were very instructive: Most likely to succeed, Most likely to make a million dollars, best looking, and the list goes on. Needless to say, none of those prophesies came to pass. We all had our dreams, and most of us are now doing something different. Things were so different then. It was assumed that a few of us would go off to college, but most of us would either go to work for General Motors or stay on the family farm. Well, most of the family farms are long since amalgamated and rationalized, and then we all know about GM! But if things didn't turn out like we thought, and perhaps hoped they might, I can't imagine the vast different between the dreams and realities of the people of Israel and Judah in the sixth century before Christ. They had been defeated in battle and carried off into captivity. Their rebellions, what today we would call movements of national liberation, had been crushed ruthlessly. Their economy was not merely in shambles, it had ceased to exist. It was, as the kids sometimes say, a bad time to be them.

And in the midst of the loss of everything they held dear, God spoke to them through the prophet Jeremiah and said, “Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Marry wives and beget sons and daughters; take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters and you may increase there and not dwindle away. Seek the welfare of any city to which I have carried you off, and pray to the Lord for it; on its welfare your welfare will depend. For these are the words of the Lord of Hosts of the God of Israel: Do not be deceived by the prophets or the diviners among you, and do not listen to the wise women whom you set to dream dreams. They prophesy falsely to you in my name; I did not send them. This is the very word of the Lord.” (Jeremiah 29: 5-9 NEB)

You see, there were lots of people who had a significant stake in agitating for factional rebellion and alignment in the Jewish community in those days. People sought to regain wealth and power lost, or to control the present situation, or to reinstate the glories of the past, or to control the direction of the future. Some were patriots and some were scoundrels, some were motivated by love of God and Country, and some were motivated by lust for power and wealth and celebrity. But God spoke plainly through the prophet. In a sense he said “Let go and let God.” I think it was Stephen Covey in Seven Habits of Highly Effective People who pointed out that many people spend most of their time fussing over things that are beyond their control, things which sometimes do not even affect them. How much happier we would be, he muses, if we would spend more time developing specific strategies for addressing real problems which impact us directly and over which we can assert some influence.

How many of us live in the past, attempting to wish what is not into existence? I once knew a man who loved to watch the movie “Gettysburg.” He would watch it over and over, hoping, he said, “that it would end differently next time.” Perhaps some of us are like my friend, always going back to the past to revisit what was done, and drawing motivation and anger and brooding darkness from things which cannot be changed. I daresay on the basis of today's Old Testament lesson that it is time for us to find God's healing for the hurts and disappointments of the past, and to live in the present, even as we look to the future, with some semblance of trust in God, hope in his providence, and optimism that we who are made in his image can and will find a way to live together with some degree of mutual respect.

But like the Children of Israel, we are beset by forces that would cause us to dwell in the hurtful past, remembering every slight and questioning the motives of every good deed. Don't listen to such folks. Whether they are on the television or radio or in the paper, or they are your loud mouthed and opinionated brother-in-law does not really matter. Whether you voted for them or not does not really matter. Whether or not you agree with them does not really matter. We know who the people are who drag us down and make us negative. They cause us to distrust our neighbors and hold onto grudges for generations. Now this is not to say that we should live in a Polyanish world where we deny the reality of the evil around us. We are called by the Scriptures to “be wise as serpents-----but gentle as doves.” Some people are threats to the general welfare- and until Jesus comes, there are plenty of good deeds done merely to manipulate and control people. But we as Christians are called to be realistic optimists, rationally assessing the nature of things around us, and overcoming our emotional attachments which so often call us to a sense of victimhood and anger. 

You are made in God's image, rational creatures, with the capacity to love and be loved, and invited by God to participate with him in the very act of creation. Jesus said time and again “be not afraid, for I am with you.” He still says it, and he is with us all the days of our lives. So, don't let anyone, human or demonic, so wrap you up in past pain or ongoing sense of loss, that you are crippled by grief or anger or negativity or pessimism. It will only make you miserable and chase away those who would like to be your friends. Rather calmly and objectively face the realities in your life, and get on with the business of building homes and families and communities, and growing gardens, and passing on to the next generation that faith and those values which bind us together and bring us to greatness. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. AMEN

Breakfast At Briarwood

The View at Breakfast this Morning
 

What started as a very normal week became a very hectic week when my friend Jim interrupted Wednesday morning's Bible study in the church library to announce, "Bill, your Mom is in the hospital and Rebecca will meet you there."  My well planned schedule was cast to the winds, and as I drove to the hospital, I made calls to insure that my responsibilities were covered for the next couple of days.  Mom is recuperating nicely and hopes to be released today, and once again I give thanks for my good neighbors at Fairfield Medical Center here in Lancaster.  On Thursday, I was able to make the trip to our Diocesan Retreat Center at the Proctor Farm to receive Communion from my Bishop and attend the Clergy Day workshop.  And then, things got wonderfully interesting.

I had decided that on the way home, I would stop for some dove shooting at Deer Creek State Park with Oscar.  It was raining and the corn had been removed in the area I had targeted, so the doves were down.  I drove over to a spot which on the map had looked like a stand of mature oak and hickory trees to find that it was merely a young stand of softwoods, and so squirrel hunting was out as well.  Then, as a consolation, I decided to take young Oscar and walk down a couple of small creeks in the area to see if I could find any wood duck.  We were not disappointed!  We found two small flocks, or perhaps gaggles of ducks, and Oscar was in heaven.  This was his first introduction to them, While I was unable to shoot because the season is not yet in, I believe I have the makings of a pretty good water dog.  He did not settle down until we got back to Circleville! 

Oscar at Breakfast this Morning
 

And so here we are at breakfast this morning after a good night's sleep.  Two eggs soft boiled, bacon, toast with Rebecca's spiced rum peach jelly, and tea completed the meal.  Surely there is no place like home, except heaven, and that is after all home, and what we try to imitate in the design and temper of those places where we live and worship in this life.  Soon, I will go into town to see how Mom is doing, and then perhaps to AW Marion State Park for a bit of fishing. But until then, I will settle in with my Bible and enjoy this little bit of heaven we call Briarwood.

Wednesday Bible Study from St. John's Lancaster

I've been asked to post my notes for Christian Education classes this year, and so I start with many good intentions.  The Wednesday studies, at least initially, will consist of a directed discussion on the assigned Epistle Lesson for the coming Sunday.  Here are my preliminary notes for  Proper 21 C Revised Common Lectionary: I Timothy 6:6-19.

St. Paul in Prison, perhaps writing to Bishop Timothy?

Introduction:
I Timothy is a Pastoral Epistle from what today we might call an archbishop (Paul), to a young Bishop (Timothy.)  All of the book up to today's lesson constitutes a necessary prequel to today's admonition.  In this prequel, St. Paul illustrates the basic nature of orthodox, catholic, apostolic belief and practice.
1. Christ centered doctrine and a call to and definition of faith constitute the bulk of chapter 1.
2. Prayer and moral example dominate chapter 2.
3. Chapter three is about qualifications for ecclesial office.
4. Chapters four and five, and the opening verses of chapter 6, provide admonitions about how to deal with controversies involving devotional practices, extra biblical doctrines, monastic practice, clergy compensation, and social order, and Timothy is admonished not to back down from those who would reject his authority.
 5. Chapter six opens by characterizing the foregoing chapters as a description of Christian faith and practice, and goes on to reject the authority of those who deny or resist such teaching and practice. Then follows a very specific discussion of what constitutes real Christian motives and piety.  Health and wealth gospels are rejected out of hand, and believers are called to model and seek more spiritual virtues to adorn their character: justice, piety, fidelity, love, fortitude, and gentleness. Then comes a final Christocentric statement of faith and exhortations to seek spiritual rather than material wealth, and to avoid vain chatter and false intellectual pretense.

Questions:
1. What are the virtues listed in 6:11-12 called in different translations of the Bible?
2. Are you surprised that the book begins and ends with exhortations to right belief about Jesus?  What constitutes this right belief? (cf 1:15-17 and 6:13-16)
3. What are the "orders to be obeyed" referred to in Chapter 6 verse 14?
4. What elements of the Creeds do you find in the doctrinal portions of chapters one and six?

Outline for This Year's Rector's Forum

Attached is the outline for the rector's forum this year at St. John's.  Please excuse the formatting, I had some trouble moving it from power point to blogger.  I hope to see you there!  Thanks, Bill+

Rector's Forum 2013-14

-Meets 2nd,3rd,4th,and 5th Sundays at 9:15 -Meets in the Long Class in the Education Wing -Will focus on Intro to the Old Testament

Purposes of the Rector's Forum

1. To provide resources which will help to strengthen faith and deepen the student's relationship with Jesus Christ.
2.To teach the "Faith Received" from Christ and his Apostles

Methodology of the Forum

1. Lecture to provide factual data
2. read to provide further background.
Scroll down for rest of outline

 

 

 

 

 

 

October and November: The Pentateuch

Creation Narratives: Purpose, Order, and Love The Nature of God and of Man  Providential History of Israel
 Formed by God through Trial and Deliverance
The Meaning of and Reason for Holiness  The Gift of hope and Land of Promise

December and January: Historical Books

God works through people to accomplish his will

 God's response to human failure

How God even works through bad things

Faithful people in good times and bad

The nature of God's community on earth

 

February: The Poetic Books

Nature of Praise
Good and Evil
Wisdom
Honesty with God
 

March and April: Major and Minor Prophets

Hope of Israel
Getting our Attention
Christ Prophesied
Unpopularity of Truth

 

May: The ApocryphaWhat it is and how we use it Overview of Revelation Before Jesus