Author: John Thomas Frazier

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 13: Year 2

Psalms 80, 77, [79]; Judges 6:25-40; Acts 2:37-47; John 1:1-18

“That night the Lord said to him, ‘Take your father’s bull, the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that belongs to your father, and cut down the sacred pole that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on the top of the stronghold here, in proper order; then take the second bull, and offer it as a burnt-offering with the wood of the sacred pole that you shall cut down.’ So Gideon took ten of his servants, and did as the Lord had told him; but because he was too afraid of his family and the townspeople to do it by day, he did it by night. When the townspeople rose early in the morning, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the sacred pole beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built.”  (Judges 6: 25 – 28)

While all of the Daily Office Readings are wonderful, my pondering gravitated towards the lesson I gleaned in Judges.  Gideon has been called by God to let go, let go of the beliefs of his parents to ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.  This is not new.  Abram too was called from his father’s house to a place that God would show him. We read in Genesis twelve, “Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your countryand your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1)  So God calls us from darkness to light and to more light, and to further light.

I think this resonated with me so much because I too had to let go of old and false beliefs in order to behold the real truth about God.  My parents would have me believe in the man constructed system of racism even though they themselves were considered on the bottom rung of the racial divide.  It has taken time, but God has called me away from believing such nonsense.

What I have also pondered about the Gideon story is that there is often the requirement to give up something in order to obtain something. And it may not be an action that we are bold enough to do openly.  Gideon did his deed at night so as to avoid notice.  I chose to give up any special so-called black cultural expectations in order to be accepted among my dark skinned peers. I chose to be me based only on what I felt comfortable with, secretly at first.  As I followed God’s call on my life, rather than that of my peers, my God-dependent path became more and more clear and more and more open.

There should never be any such thing as white or black privilege or expectation based on skin shade.  Such baseless ideologies stand in the place that should be reserved for God’s call on your soul. Racism and discrimination are  altars of Baal and the non-sacred poles of our parents outdated superstition.  We must remove them in order to make room for the real Truth: the Truth that is God. Stepping out of our expected behavior into true belief territory is not easy, but it is very necessary.  The truth will make us free.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Track 2, Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 13: Year A

Isaiah 55:1-5;  Psalm 145: 8-9, 15-22;  Romans 9:1-5; Matthew 14:13-21

“Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.” (Matthew 14: 19)

Jesus was moved with compassion to teach the people how to live with each other and to live in an occupied land.  He healed the sick.  And lastly, feeling their hunger, he was moved to feed them with whatever provision was available, in this case, five loaves and two fish.

Jesus took the food, blessed the food, divided the food into manageable portions and then distributed the food.  This process is repeated in our Church at every Sunday Eucharist.  We take, bless, brake and give.  Our Lord Jesus will repeat these four steps at his last supper.  He will take, bread, bless both bread and wine, divide up the meal and pass it around to those at the table.

Having a meal together is perhaps the most intimate practice we can do together.  At meal time, anguish must leave.  I once shared a meal with a fellow Marine in Memphis, Tennessee. He, Scotty, prepared the meal.  It was chicken and rice.   I wanted whole pieces of chicken with rice on the side.  Scotty insisted on cutup pieces of chicken mixed in the rice.  I was angry that he ignored my preference.  When we sat at table, and placed the chicken and rice mixture on the table before us and said the grace, and then filled our plates, we began talking about people at work and our beloved Marine Corps.  I let go of my unfulfilled want of having whole pieces of chicken.  It may have been some greed at work in me, I don’t know, but I’m glad I let that go. Moreover, we were able to eat a second night from the same pot.  Scotty was smart, but it was God who took care of us, even in my displeasure. We took the food, blessed it, divvied it up, and partook of the food.  It was communion.

Notice that because of this COVID crisis that we are going through, we, the followers of our Lord Jesus, are again seated in the grass, here at St Paul’s in the Pines, and in many churches across the country.  We are practicing our faith like those of two thousand years ago. Sometimes God will take unfortunate circumstances and bring about good works from them. God takes us from the towns we live in, blesses us in our gathered worship, and then sends us back into the town, renewed and blessed.  And this blessing is not for us to lavish in for our own sake.  No, no; we are blessed and we are to be a blessing to all who could not, or, for whatever reason, did not, come and worship with us. God is blessing us to pass it on. You are the carriers of God’s blessings to others. This is what Jesus did with his first disciples, he gave to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the crowds. You are now called to do the same.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 12: Year 2

 Psalms 75, 76,  23, 27 Judges 5:19-31; Acts 2:22-36; Matthew 28:11-20

“‘You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know, this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power.”  (Acts 2: 22 – 24)

Peter painfully reminds the Israelites of both who Jesus was and is, and, their part in going against the goodness of God in handing him over to be killed.  Even though those who actually crucified were outside their faith, they indeed were responsible. 

The important thing to remember for us today, who call ourselves Christians, is that our Lord Jesus was and is, the living will of God. Today we can only read of “the deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through” our Lord Jesus among the people. We must read and believe.

Today, as Christians, we must believe in the living Jesus.  Our belief then is made manifest in how we conduct ourselves in everyday life.  We do not return evil for evil.  We seek fairness and justice for all people.  But first and foremost, we must love God.  For some of us, without regular church services during the restrictions of this pandemic, it is difficult.  But church was never intended to be first.  First faith starts at home and in the heart of the individual. The story of Jesus is shared so that the hearer might grab on and believe.  And in believing, the faithful might come together in church community.  But even without the gathered church, we are still held accountable to the precepts of our Baptismal Covenant, our allegiance to the teachings of Christ.   

Peter reminds us, “This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you both see and hear.” (Acts 2: 32 – 33)  Peter’s words are not limited to his time and day: they are meant for us today as well.

Peter continues, “Therefore let the entire house of Israel [and indeed the world] know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.” (Acts 2: 36)  Being a Christian can be painful when we remember that we have something to also be ashamed of, that is, the participation in the death of the Son of God. We might also ponder about any acts we do today that are inconsistent with the faithful covenant we have made to be a Christian and amend our lives accordingly, Church notwithstanding.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 12: Year 2

Psalms 69:1-23(24-30)31-38,  73;  Judges 5:1-18; Acts 2:1-21; Matthew 28:1 – 10

Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  (Matthew 28: 10)

Encounters with the Resurrected Jesus differ according to the Gospel we read.  In Matthew, the disciples are instructed to return to Galilee and there, Jesus will meet them.  Luke and John have Jesus meeting them in Jerusalem of Judea.  Mark is unclear about location in his extended version.  I like the Galilee meeting.  Galilee is where Jesus began his ministry and walked throughout Galilee preaching the Good news, and healing many, and casting out demons, for three years.  This place moved me as I sat in a boat in Lake Galilee in February of 2018 with a full view of the land that Jesus walked.  I took a picture of it and it is the scene at the top of each new One Who Ponders blog.

So Jesus says return to your beginnings and you will see me.  They were Galileans, for the most part, fishermen by trade.  Galilee is where they were grounded in their faith.  How about you?  Where were you when you were first told about our Lord Jesus?  Where is your Galilee?

Your Galilee may be more than a single, physical location.  Jesus’ instruction to return to Galilee may be an invitation to go back to the time (and place) when you first decided to follow him.  As Galilee is a vast area with several notable towns where our Lord Jesus taught and performed signs and wonders; like the Sermon on the Mount at Mount Tabor; the raising of a woman’s son in Nain; where he was raised by Mary in Nazareth; the feeding of the multitudes near Capernaum where he chose to live and other places as well.  

Your Galilee may be a vast area or collections of life-altars also.  Going back may be a serious meditation on your own Galilee experience.  My own Galilee includes St Vincent de Paul Catholic School in Nashville, Tennessee; Paris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot in South Carolina; St Anne’s Episcopal Church in Memphis Tennessee; Virginia The Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia; and St Paul’s in the Pines Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, North Carolina. All of these are the building blocks of my spirituality.

What and where are your life-altar places that make up your Galilee experiences?  These are the places that Jesus is asking you to return to in order to meet him again. Meditate on these places.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 12: Year 2

 Psalms [70], 71 and 74;  Judges 4: 4 – 23; Acts 1:15 – 26; Matthew  27: 55 – 66

“At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment.”  (Judges 4: 4 –  5)

Women, in particular the strength of women, is often overlooked in the Bible.  Today, in our Daily Office Readings from the book of Judges we have two women who are revealed as very strong human beings.  Deborah the Prophet, and Jael, who I would bet was a builder of tents, inasmuch as she could drive a tent peg with the best of men.

While the Bible says that Deborah sat under a tree named after her, I believe it was her presence that gave the tree the name.  And all Israel came to her for judgment, for guidance and direction. They needed her presence so much that Barak, son of Abinoam, would not go to war unless she accompanied him. (verse 6). 

God has always included women in the carrying out of life and the promise of salvation.  Men have too often overlooked this important fact. But this does not negate what God intends for all people in the fulfillment of what God is doing. This is true even in the conflict of war itself.

During a battle with Sisera, the cowardly leader opposing Barak and Deborah, he fled to the protection of Jael.  “But Jael wife of Heber took a tent-peg, and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, until it went down into the ground—he was lying fast asleep from weariness—and he died.” (Judges 4: 21)

Some of this language never comes up in “polite” company or our Sunday Lectionary.  But it is among our holy writings. It definitely shows God’s hand at work in women and that God’s wrath can also be made manifest in the leadership of women.  We need to see, and be aware of, God’s will being made manifest in all human beings.  This is the way God, has worked, is working, and always will work.  This includes you, whoever you are.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday of Proper 12: Year 2

 Psalms 72 and 119:73-96;  Judges 3:12 – 30; Acts 1:1 – 14; Matthew  27: 45 – 54

“In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.”  (Acts 1: 1 – 3)

When I read scripture, I remember that I am standing behind the writer.  I am watching Luke, a man who never knew Jesus the way the other apostles did.  He learned from Peter and Paul.  I remember that his teacher Paul did not know Jesus in the flesh either, Paul met the resurrected Jesus while he, (Paul) was traveling to Damascus.

Even with this insight, I know that the “Acts of the Apostles” is Luke’s second book, his Gospel being the first.  Acts starts out with heavy input from Peter but ends with Paul speaking. It wasn’t until I saw the movie “Paul, Apostle of Christ” (with James Faulkner as Paul and Jim Caviezel as Luke) that I realized how significant Luke was in providing these writings to us.  He put himself at great risk going into and out of confinement with Paul.

Luke was an educated man, a physician.  He was accustomed to writing and taking notes.  God used the gifts of Luke to ensure we, of today, knew the history of Jesus and the first apostles, disciples and Christians. It must be remembered that he never met Jesus personally. He received his information from Peter and Paul. God still gifts a few of us with what we need as a community.  We get what we need for now, and we get what we need for the future – like Luke.

The only thing you have to do to please God is; live, believe, have courage when it seems dangerous, and make use of the gifts God has graced you with. This leads to the kingdom of God that Jesus spoke of through Luke. Thank you Lord Jesus.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 12: Year 2

Psalms 61, 62, 68:1-20 (21-23) 24-36;  Judges 2:1-5,11-23; Romans 16:17-27; Matthew 27:32-44

“Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he delivered them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the Lord would be moved to pity by their groaning because of those who persecuted and oppressed them.  But whenever the judge died, they would relapse and behave worse than their ancestors, following other gods, worshipping them and bowing down to them. They would not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways.” (Judges 2: 18 – 19)

Perhaps judges were prophets of sorts but they seem to take on more of a military role.  God was with them for the good of the people.  But what’s important here is that the judges were raised by God for the well being and direction of the people.

I think it was through the feelings of the judges that God could feel what the people were going through. This would be kind of a pre-Jesus experience for God where the Creator felt a little of what the people were feeling. 

There is a timeless truth at work with the book of Judges.  There was no School of Theology or Seminary for human selected young ones to attend for a human crafted degree of certification.  God graced who God raised up as a judge. I believe this is still true today.  There are God-selected people, men and women, in our midst like Deborah and even Samson, who are graced by God for the strategic purpose of moving us to where God wants us to be.  Denomination or religious tradition notwithstanding, God will choose who God will choose. God always has, God always will.  According to the words that our Lord Jesus gave us to pray, “God’s will be done.” You might be such a person.  No person can say that he or she is not good enough.  Such thoughts and words do not really limit who you are; such thoughts and words attempt to limit the ability of God: for which, there is no limit, and for whom, nothing is impossible.  Pray to discern if God is raising you for the work of a modern day judge!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 12: Year 2

Psalms 56, 57, [58],  64, 65; Joshua 24:16-33; Romans 16:1-16; Matthew  27: 24-31

“So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.’ Then the people as a whole answered, ‘His blood be on us and on our children!’ So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.”   (Matthew 27: 24 – 26)

So Pilate washed his hands, but his heart was still filthy. He had our Lord Jesus beaten before being handed over to be crucified.  However, a literal interpretation of this translation implies that Pilate himself whipped Jesus.  Most readers would assume that Pilate had his soldiers do the dirty work. But in any case, Pilate re-soiled his “baptized” hands.

Yesderday I watched the news about the final crossing of the Edmund Pettus bridge by the deceased U. S. Representative John Lewis in a horse drawn caisson in Selma, Alabama.  He was saluted by, the new generation of Alabama State Troopers. He was beaten and arrested by the 1965 Alabama State Troopers 55 years ago on that same bridge.  Dirty hearts make dirty hands.  But clean hearts and clean hands saluted him yesterday.  This is not my Grandfather’s Alabama.

So often we all must look back on the misdirection of those who went before us and ponder anew the right thing to do.  John Lewis’ blood be on the hands of Alabama State Troopers until they too washed, “Baptized,” their hands for an honorable salute to the same man on the same bridge.

Today we remember William Reed Huntington, Priest (27 July 1909)

Huntington is remembered for his efforts to recognize Deaconesses as an important part of Christian ministry.  He is also remembered among Episcopalians as a devoted member of General Convention in the House of Deputies from 1870 to his death in 1909.  We still carry his notable prayer for Fridays in Morning Prayer which reads: “Almighty God, whose dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.” This prayer is so fitting also for John Lewis who walked the way of the cross, to include beatings and arrests.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 12: Year A

Romans 8:26-39;  Matthew 13:31-33,44-52

“Have you understood all this?” They answered, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” (Matthew 13: 51 – 52)

Leading up to the part where our Lord Jesus asks if the disciples “understood all this,” is a series of “The kingdom of heaven is like,” statements. These similes are all intended to show both the growth-effect of the kingdom of heaven, (something old), and that the heart of a person’s greatest desire, can be accomplished (something new). 

The mustard seed grows to be the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.  The Israelites have been scattered and twice caught in bondage but in spite of all this they grew and grew. They overcame their captors and were freed. They became the foundational tree of a One God theology where all the peoples of the earth could find comfort in its branches.

When Jesus gave us the Commandment to first love God and then to love our neighbors as ourselves, he established for us what ought to be our greatest desire. Finding our love for God is like finding a treasure hidden in a field, something for which we would be most happy to sell everything we have to have it. Again, finding our love for God is like finding fine pearls and again selling all that we have to have them. Truly loving God is total and complete happiness. It is when we love God with all that we are that we can then love our neighbors. It does not work when trying to love neighbor or even family before loving God.  Love God first, then it works.

The reward of our faith, and the growth of it, brings us both something new and something old.  But also, this is to reflect the Christian Testament (something new), and the Torah (something old). So when the disciples were asked if they understood all this, I doubt they really did.  I doubt most Christians today really understand all this. The important question is, my beloved of Christ, do you understand all this?

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 11: Year 2

Psalms 55;  138, 139:1-17(18-23);  Joshua 23:1-16; Romans15:25-33; Matthew 27:11-23

“While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, ‘Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.’” (Matthew 27:19)

We don’t have the name of the wife of Pontius Pilot but she was definitely spiritually connected with God.  Many people, prophets and leaders of Israel were contacted by God via a divine dream.  Jacob, Daniel, and even Joseph the earthly father of our Lord Jesus are just three.  Pilot’s wife is in good company but she is not listened to. I ponder dreams.  Scripture has shown that dreams are often used as conduits of communication by God for the purpose of doing God’s work. Dreams are places of revelation.  Pilot did not listen to his wife, perhaps it was destined to be that way, who knows?  For this Matthew Gospel it may be surprising that we today, even get to hear her voice.  But we do, and so I ponder that all of us should look deeper into our dreams of revelation.

Dreams are very slippery.  If we wait too long we forget the details of our dreams.  It could be an important message lost.  I have personally witnessed one person share a dream and another person at the table interpret what the dream could have meant. It made so much sense.  I think to prepare to download dreams we have to prepare in advance of sleep.  We could have paper and pen at the ready near the bed, or perhaps a phone or recording device with which we could quickly capture the experience.  And there should be some caution in doing this.  As we read from the experience of Pilot’s wife, “I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.”  However, for the most part, I believe God’s message for us will move us closer to the will of God in good ways.  I believe the Spirit of God connects with us in some of our dreams (not all) because we stay too busy with worldly things to hear God during our waking hours.

Today we also remember St. James the apostle:

“James, the brother of John, is often known as James the Greater, to distinguish him from the other Apostle of the same name, commemorated in the calendar with Philip, and also from James “the brother of our Lord.” He was the son of a Galilean fisherman, Zebedee, and with his brother John left his home and his trade in obedience to the call of Christ. With Peter and John, he seems to have belonged to an especially privileged group, whom Jesus chose to be witnesses to the Transfiguration, to the raising of Jairus’ daughter, and to his agony in the garden. (From Lesser Feast and Fasts at https://extranet.generalconvention.org/staff/files/download/21034)

I often think that while we like to hold up twelve apostles, Jesus specifically chose about seven, as recorded in the Gospels.  Of the seven, three were particularly invited to witness very special events like those mentioned from the Lesser Feast and Fast above.  Yes, James was special.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through the saints of God and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John