How to Build a New Year's Resolution

Rector's Rambling for January 2013
St. John's Lancaster

Looking to the Future
Monarch of the Glen by Edwin Henry Landseer 1851

December is the busiest time of the year for a priest.  But I must admit (as my good wife occasionally points out) that much of the busyness is of my own making.  I agree to do things that are good in and of themselves, and I suppose it is an honour to be asked to do them, and someone should do them; but they don't directly support my mission and vocation to be a good priest at St. John's, a good husband and father, and a great grandpa.  This December experience, which is much the same every year, prompts me to consider a new rubric for developing my new year's resolutions for the coming year.

Somewhere along the line, probably in the Army, I attended a management seminar which taught that I should establish a brief, quantifiable mission statement for my life, and that everything I do ought to be justifiable in terms of that mission statement.  For instance, I am a parish priest.  Therefore conduct of the worship service on Sunday is very important, because that is what my status as a priest demands that I do.  In like manner, sermon preparation, personal prayer, and adequate rest are essential to the successful performance of my professional duties, and therefore are given a high and justifiable priority.  On the other hand, a three week trip to Argentina to shoot game birds might be lots of fun, and might be very relaxing is some ways, but there is no possible way that I could say it supports my mission priority as a parish priest.  It would have a much lower priority in my life, and would be done on vacation time, not work time.  And it would be improper for the church to fund such a trip.  All because it is not directly related to my mission as a priest.

Bishop Breidenthal has over the past three years or so led our diocese in the development of a set of mission priorities.  Our budget and diocesan staff are now organized around these priorities, and all expenditures of time and money are expected to be justified in terms or their relationship to the priorities.  And so as I approach the new year, I find myself thinking that I should dig back into my old notes from the Army, and inspired by the example of our bishop, try to tighten up my own erratic calendar of commitments in the year to come.  My mission statement has already been stated above.  I will strive to be a good parish priest, a good husband and father, and a great grandpa.  That is the easy part.  Now comes the hard part.  As I fulfill current obligations, will I have the strength to say "no" to future opportunities to do good things if they do not directly support my priorities- my mission?  What it means to be a good parish priest is clearly outlined in the ordinal in the Book of Common Prayer and in the Pastoral Epistles of Saint Paul.  What it means to be a good husband is clearly outlined in the vows and charges of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.  What it means to be a great grandpa (and perhaps a good dad) is measured more subjectively by balancing the laughter of Margaret and Helen with the raised eyebrows I get from their mother!  Other things, even good things, which do not fit into one of these three priorities are luxuries that I may or may not be able to afford.  I may say yes to a few, but if I say yes to too many, I will fail to accomplish my mission and purpose, because my focus will be scattered and my resources spread too thin.

I dare say the conundrum I ponder faces us all most of the time.  In the coming year, I hope that we will all be able to establish a list of priorities, a mission for our lives.  I pray that we will have the wisdom to focus not on all of the good things that need to be done, but on those things which God has called us to include in our mission.  It may be that on occasion there is some justification for saying "yes" to something that does not directly support our mission.  But if we do that too much, we will never accomplish the work God gives us to do.  In this coming year, I hope God will give you the strength to say "no," and the wisdom to know when to say "yes."  And I believe with all my heart that if we include him in the process of determining what is the real purpose and mission of our lives, he will give us all of the strength and wisdom we need.  Through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.  AMEN.

   

Sacramenmtal Confession at St. John's

Dear Friends,

Over the past months, the “Pizza and God Talk” sessions with the youth of St. John’s have led us to consider how we might experience a deeper sense of forgiveness and acceptance from God. One of the disciplines we discussed was “The Reconciliation of a Penitent,” found on page 447 of The Book of Common Prayer. This sacramental rite, sometimes called “Confession,” has not been regularly offered at our parish for many years, if ever. When properly considered and practiced, it allows a Christian to be much more specific about dealing with issues which can produce guilt, shame, or alienation than the general confessions of the church are likely to do. Verbalizing one’s specific sins and shortcomings to God in the presence of a priest; and discussing practical spiritual, emotional, and vocational responses within the pronouncement of forgiveness, can be a powerful way to develop spiritual, emotional, and physical health. Telling God what you are doing in the presence of a priest who is sworn to confidentiality not only gets the secret off your heart, but it also can give you strength to not commit the sin again.

Some of the young people of our parish have asked if I will hear their confessions. If you are a parent and have questions or concerns about this discipline, please call me at 740/215-3900 so that we can set up a time to talk. If you would like to participate in or learn more about this ancient practice of the church, please call me as well. Regular confession can be a wonderful, healing part of your Christian devotion and can make you feel clean and at peace with God.

Sincerely,

Bill+

Spiritual Classics of Anglicanism

The Compass Rose of Anglicanism

I was attracted to Anglicanism by many things.  But perhaps its eminent practicality and pastoral realism were for me the greatest draw.  If the writers of the old British situation comedy "Yes, Prime Minister" are right in season one episode seven (The Bishop's Gambit), and theology in the modern church is merely an exercise for justifying not believing in God, then eminent practicality and pastoral realism, growing out of a warm faith in Jesus, based in apostolic orthodoxy, constitute a welcome respite from what often surrounds us.  In any event, I sometimes get tired of arguing with hard headed zealots (both Whigs and pharisees) on the one hand, and pinheads who employ intellectual methodology to redefine the faith on the other.  Perhaps it is better to believe that which I have received from eyewitnesses- that which is contained in Creed and Canon of Scripture.  Perhaps it is better to acquiesce to the faith received than to argue modern notions of piety or interpretation.  Perhaps it is better to live the religion I have known and experienced by faith than to agonize over that which I am not smart enough to understand or industrious enough to discover through honest scholarship.

With these things in mind, I have been considering two books which I have long thought to be among Anglicanism's greatest classics: Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame, and The Compleat Angler, by Izaak Walton.  Neither book is particularly religious, and the former was written by a neo-pagan, but both describe admirably the nature of Christian life and community within that aphorus ideal which is called "the ethos of Anglicanism."

A Story of Living Together

Wind in the Willows chronicles the everyday adventures of forest dwellers who are very different, and at times even at odds, but who are forced to co-exist by virtue of their geographic proximity to each other.  In simple ways, that proximity over the years allows them to develop a common set of basic values which ultimately transcends their diversity.  Perhaps this lesson of the animals is an idealized reflection of what ought to be in a land where all the King's subjects are in a sense the responsibility of the King's Church, whether they realize it or not.  As weasels and stoats, badgers, rats, moles, rabbits, and otters live together in and around the wild wood and the river bank; so all those who name Christ as Lord, and beyond that all those for whom he died, are called to realize that we share one world, bestowed upon us by a loving Heavenly Father for our own benefit and pleasure.  It behooves us to get along and to care for one another, for God desires our reconciliation to himself and to each other.

The Izaak Walton Window
From Winchester Cathederal's South East Transcept

The Compleat Angler grows out of one of Mater Anglicaina's most difficult experiences, that of the interregnum under Cromwell and parliamentary rule.  What is a good man to do in impossible times?  To follow the example of Christ's apostles and "go a fishing" is perhaps the best thing.  But fishing is more than merely the pursuit of meat for the frying pan.  It consists of true conviviality, of sharing fellowship, wisdom, and material goods with friends and strangers alike.  It is a matter of appreciating the blessings and beauty around us, and sharing them generously with all people in the name of simple civility and grace.

In these uncertain times, when so many things that seemed so sure are vanishing with each ensuing day, I cling to the faith I have received from the Anglican Divines, the Church Fathers, the Apostles of our Lord, and so many other good and godly people.  I suppose I have stopped looking for a perfect church, or state, or institution of any type.  I must be content to live where I find myself, trusting in God, coming to terms with those people, good and not so good, among whom I live, and doing all the good I can in all the ways I can.  Others may be called to other ways, or to other visions of how the faith ought to be lived, but for me, at my age and in my place, the graces and beauties of classic Anglicanism, with all of her lovability and all of her warts, will have to do. 

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

Goodbye Pony Girl

Ashley on Squirt in 1996

Today, Dr. Forsythe came to the farm and we put Squirt down.  The Cushing's had advanced to the point that keeping her comfortable was beyond our available resources.  Ashley came up for the day to brush her one last time and to be with her as she died.  Our tears have flowed freely today.  Rebecca and I hugged each other as T.J. buried our beloved pony next to Locksley, her old stablemate.

Tristan and Squirt, ready for pass in review sometime in the  mid '90's

She taught several children to ride, taught us all to drive, and was the hit of many a school or church festival, where she tirelessly gave pony rides to scores of children who without her never would have been close to a horse.  In her younger years, she was a regular fixture at St. Francis Day animal blessings, and her flash and style made her a real crowd pleaser.  As a three year old, she placed third at the Ohio State Fair in open roadster class, and we bought her not long after that.  Dave Bailey and I drove to Darke county and brought her home for $500.  It was some of the best money I ever spent.

Ashley driving a very young Tristan somewhere,
Perhaps to a regimental muster?

 

Tristan called home from University to see how things went with the vet.  While he never developed a love of horses like his sister, he did think a great deal of this little gal who was so much a part of our lives here at Briarwood. 

I'd like to thank all of the people who have called and written to express their condolences to us about the loss of animals over the past two weeks.  First we lost Faithful Pat the white hound, and now Squirt.  It is as if an era in our lives has passed.  We give thanks for what has been, and look forward to a wonderful future together.  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN.

Goodbye Squirtie

Fergus, Pat, and Lassie
other good friends from the old days