Author: John Thomas Frazier

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper18: Year 2

Psalms 41, 52, and  44; Job 32:1-10,19-33:1,19-28; Acts 13:44 to 52; John 10:19 to 30

“When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and praised the word of the Lord; and as many as had been destined for eternal life became believers.  Thus the word of the Lord spread throughout the region.  But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, and stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their region.  So they shook the dust off their feet in protest against them, and went to Iconium.  And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 13: 48 to 52)

We just can’t please everybody.  The Jewish authorities took offense to the message of Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their region.  Today we still do not want to sit and listen to people who disagree with us.  We only want to win, even if winning our way is really not the best outcome for all concerned.

We must pay attention to the words that say, “devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city” were incited by smooth talkers.  We must ponder about the words we hear.  From social media to politics and religion, we sometimes lose the purpose of what we are fighting about and are only concerned about our side winning. We need to stop letting ourselves be manipulated and follow the advice of Blaise Pascal who said,  “All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.” 

 And when polarized persons will not accept our need to ponder the deeper meaning of our choices, we need to follow the model that Paul and Barnabas set for us and shake the dust off our feet in protest and just be filled with the Holy Spirit.                                                                                              

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

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Daily Office Readings for Sunday of Proper 18: Year 2

 Psalms 63:1-8(9-11), 98, and  103;  Job 25:1to 6,27:1to6; Rev. 14:1to 7,13; Matt. 5:13 to 20

“No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house.”  (Matthew 5:15)

I love the hymn, “This Little Light of Mine.”  It is a reminder that we are truly called to be the light of the world. But maybe we are a “battery powered” light rather than a flame torch and our batteries are weak.  We either need to get them charged or get new batteries.

Decency is key.  Our baptismal covenant requires us to respect the dignity of every human being. For me, this means being kind to everyone without regard to how others might treat us.  It is in this way that we are the light of the world.  And remember, Jesus gave it to us, so we are going to let it shine.  And, everywhere we go, we are going to let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.

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New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 18: Year A

Romans 13:8 to14:  and Matthew 18:15to20

“For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” (Matthew 18:20)

Our Lord Jesus lived out this idea of 2 or 3.  His favorite three were Simon Peter, John and James.  He took only them with him to heal Jairus’ daughter; to the Mount of Transfiguration; and in the garden when he went to pray the night he was arrested.  You might say that Peter, John and James were his “executive counsel.”  They were all simple men, fishermen by trade.

The important qualities were, and are, a good and loving heart, and strong faith. They all had flaws. Peter was an ego-centric extrovert. John and James wanted to prearrange a position of glory for themselves in the kingdom. But notice that our Lord Jesus held onto them for his inner circle. 

Is there a lesson in this example of three for us? In the passage from our Gospel lesson for this Sunday Jesus moves from a one-on-one situation to the whole Church.  But in the middle he asks us to select one or two others to bear witness of the troubling situation.  Can you pick two or three people from your faith community to stand by you in difficult times?  Find 1 or 2, and you will make three, and Jesus is with thee.

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 17: Year 2

Psalms  30, 32, 42, and 43: Job 22:1 to 4 and verse 21 to chapter 23 to verse7; Acts 13:26 to 43; John 10:1 to 18

“I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”  (John 10: 16)

This is an undeniable ecumenical statement by our Lord Jesus. In spite of this pronouncement John will come and say to Jesus that he tried to stop someone from casting out demons in Jesus’ name because he was not following Jesus in their group.  But Jesus rebuked him and said do not stop him (Luke 9:49).

We Christians often get wrapped around the axel when it comes to denominations.  All Christians are on the path that best suits them. Given this, I do feel that some experimentation is necessary. Christianity is not “one size fits all.”  Our Presiding Bishop of our Episcopal Church says that we are on the Episcopal path of the Jesus movement.  I like that explanation.

Pretty much any path is better than no path.  But even if we encounter someone who is on no religious path we are still called to love them as if they shared a pew with us. Christianity is about our personal relationship with our Lord Jesus and that faith is demonstrated in how we love and treat others without regard to what they believe or do not believe.

Much good work is being done through ecumenical organizations.  It saves precious resources when we don’t try to build and maintain staffing networks to feed the poor or provide health care when a Christian organization already has it in place, right?  

As an Episcopal priest, my most ecumenically challenged time is when I am asked to conduct a marriage between a couple of different denominations (or even different religious affiliations).  I am thankful that they have a faith path but really wish they were the same.  My Prayer Book only requires that at least one of them be baptized.  However, I want more.  Please don’t judge me.  I’m still a work in progress.  Besides, later on, according to our Lord Jesus, there will be one flock and one Shepherd.  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 Friday of Proper 17: Year 2

Psalms 31,  35;  Job 19:1 to 7 and 14 to 27; Acts 13:13 to 25; and John 9:18 to 41

“Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.”  (John 9:32)

I think the operative word here is “born” blind.  Our Lord Jesus did not restore the man’s sight as he has done for others.  Jesus gave him something he has never had, his ability to see for the first time ever.

There is more than one kind of blindness.  When we are made to see our lives in only one sad way, we are blind to the realities and love of the world.  It is almost like being color blind. 

Being born into a world in which you are told that you are less valued than others makes you blind to all the potential God has placed in you.  In my own story, I feel that I was mismanaged twice by an elementary school teacher.  I was told that I was stupid and hopeless.  This was not a race issue.  It was an issue of family hatred that I only found out about later in life.  In fact it was a combination of joining the Marines, taking psychology courses and joining the Church, that made me aware that I was not stupid or less valued than anybody else. 

In this way, joining the Church was coming to Jesus in my early thirties, and was in fact being able to see my true self for the first time.  Sometimes we lose sight of who we are.  But sometimes we never had sight of who we are.  It is a very big deal to see who we are for the very first time.  Far too many people, of all walks of life, never really see who they are and what God wants for them.  I suggest finding the Lord and let him open your eyes for the first time.  And please know this, it is never too late. In all the world, only our Lord Jesus can give sight where there was none, ever. 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 Thursday of Proper 17: Year 2

Psalm 37;  Job 16:16 to 22,17:1,13 to 16; Acts 13:1 to 12; and John 9:1 to 17

“Refrain from anger, leave rage alone; do not fret yourself; it leads only to evil.”  (Psalm 37:9)

Psalm 37 says a lot about what will happen to the wicked and how God will deal with them. This Psalm also advises us regarding doing good deeds.  Verse 9 however gives good counsel regarding our hateful emotions.

We get angry at others from time to time; why?  What makes us want to feel really bad about another?  How long does it take for such a feeling to pass, if it passes? 

When we are angry, what does it take to discipline ourselves to not act on such anger?  Can we separate our anger from our resultant words and/or action?  Saint Paul says “be angry but do not sin.”  To the Church in Ephesus he writes, “So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another.  Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil.  Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy.  Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:25 to 29)

I think the Psalmist is correct, anger and rage leads only to evil.  The word “regret” comes to mind. Some tools to prevent regret is the standard “count to ten.” I had one friend who suggested, “stop and wind your watch, even if it’s not required.”  I think the point is to force yourself to occupy your mind with something else, and do it quickly.  Once a few seconds have passed you will realize how thankful you are that you didn’t say or do something regretful.

Maybe a short prayer or a short Bible verse like “Refrain from anger, leave rage alone; do not fret yourself; it leads only to evil,” will work just fine.

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 17: Year 2

Psalms 38; 119:25 to 48; Job 12:1,14:1to 22; Acts 12:18 to 25; John 8:47 to 59

“If mortals die, will they live again?”  (Job 12: 14)

I’m betting on living again Job. The writing of the story of Job gives a wonderful account of a tree dying. “For there is hope for a tree, if it is cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease.  Though its root grows old in the earth, and its stump dies in the ground, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth branches like a young plant,” (Job 14: 7 to 9) 

So how about humans, that is, mortals?  Can we sprout shoots?  And if the stump of us dies, will the shoots of us, retain who we are? 

In the Gospel of John the persecutors of our Lord Jesus addressed Jesus with hatred, and wanted to show his words to be false and blasphemous. But Jesus stood his ground.  He said to them, “Your ancestor Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day; he saw it and was glad” (John 8: 56). The accusers around Jesus wanted to discredit him by looking at his human age, (not yet fifty).  “Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I am,” (John 8: 58). I don’t think they caught the, “I Am” part.  “I Am,” was God’s identifier with Moses. That statement however, was more than they could bear.  They wanted to kill him on the spot.  But as God would have it, His time for dying had not yet come.

So Father Abraham died a human death but was still around, in some manner of being, to witness our Lord Jesus come into this world, and he (Abraham) rejoiced!  Let us too rejoice in our risen Lord who defeated death for himself, for Abraham, for the prophets, and for all of us, so that mortals will indeed live again!  Hallelujah! Thank You Lord Jesus.

The only point to ponder about the afterlife is how we are living in this life.  All of us should be decent with one another.  There is no reason to treat people mean or disrespectfully.  I believe there will be an accounting in our next existence.  But even if there was no accounting, why have to have all in the next life be a witness to how you mistreated others?  Be kind always.  And be good for goodness sake.

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 17:Year 2

Psalms 26, 28, 36, and 39; Job 12:1 and13; 3 to17 and 21-27; Acts 12:1 to 17; and John 8:33 to 47

“While Peter was kept in prison, the church prayed fervently to God for him.” (Acts 12:5)

This Church was assembled in the home of Mary, mother of John and James, who has been killed with a sword by order of Herod.   What I don’t get is at the end of this reading, where it is said, “And he added, ‘Tell this to James and to the believers.’”(I thought James had been killed.  Can one of you reading this blog help me understand this?)

What I really want to get to is the Church praying for a miracle and getting it!  It was so surprising that the maid left Peter knocking and “When he knocked at the outer gate, a maid named Rhoda came to answer.  On recognizing Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the gate, she ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the gate.” (Acts 12: 13 and 14)

Interesting that Rhoda “recognized” his voice!  Recognizing his voice is one it the pieces of evidence that identified Peter when Jesus was arrested.  “After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you are also one of them, for your accent betrays you.”  (Matthew 26:73)  Apparently Peter’s voice is very distinct, like a Morgan Freeman or a James Earl Jones.

But it was the voices of the Church that got him freed. They asked for a miracle and then couldn’t believe it when it happened.  The same is true for us today.  We are in the midst of a pandemic and we, the Church, are praying for relief.  We will get it.

Between Peter standing at the gate here, and having the keys to the church, many Christians assume that it will be St. Peter whom we will meet in the Resurrection standing at the pearly gates.  Who knows?  I just hope to get to the gates of heaven.  Maybe I will find out which James is which.  In the mean time, we, the Church, need to be about praying for pandemic relief.  Prayer works.

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 17: Year 2

Psalms 25,  9, 15;  Job 12:1to 6, and 13 to 25; Acts 11:19 to 30; and John 8:21 to 32

“Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for an entire year they associated with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called ‘Christians’.” (Acts 11: 25 and 26)

Like everybody else in the world, Christians did not name themselves thus; they were called Christians by non-Christians, and it stuck.

So who are we really?  We Christians are still disciples.  We are students.  We are learners.  Barnabas was a good man full of the Holy Spirit and he rejoiced when he saw how people had been changed for the better.  Ironically, this was a time of the persecution of Christians and was right after the time of the stoning of Stephen.  Christians were afraid for their lives.  The Church was scattered, and for the most part, a secret society.  It seems that it is under such conditions that the Church thrives.  Christians grow their faith, first and foremost, in their homes with prayer and supplication, and with study and service.  We are not so much recruiters as we are seekers of greater love and understanding and compassion and empathy.  We strive to learn the Way of Jesus Christ.  This is who we really are.

While many joined the Christian movement in Antioch it was something they sought after, not something they were corralled into.  It is when we individually stop and ponder about the meaning of life that we evolve in good ways. Blaise Pascal said, “All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.” Sitting quietly in a room alone can be scary.  Our Lord Jesus might actually speak to us!  Before one can really be prepared to be called a Christian, a student or disciple; he or she must first be prepared in their hearts.  For where your heart is, there will your treasure be also.  I invite you to start this practice.  Find some time to sit quietly alone and ponder.

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

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Daily Office Readings for Sunday of Proper 17: Year 2

Psalms 148, 149, 150, 114, and 115;  Job 11:1-9,13-20; Rev. 5:1to14; Matthew 5:1to12

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” 

Our Lord Jesus said these words in his sermon on the mount –Mount Tabor that is.  Of all his “Blessed” sayings, the peacemaker is the one I like the best.  I am a nine on the Enneagram Institute test; which means, I am a dot-connector.  I like bringing people together.  But this test results may be more than just about me.  It may be that all Christians are called to be children of God as they are also called to bring people together.

When I have talked about this Beatitude before, I have mentioned that I like the Spanish translation better.  In essence it says, “those who work for peace shall be called children of God.”  I like this version better because to be a child of God, one is not measured by actually bringing about the peace, but rather, working towards such a peace.  No one knows if the desired peace will come but that shouldn’t stop us from trying, – that is, working towards peace.

Part 2 of 2

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 17: Year A

Romans 12:9 to 21   and Matthew 16:21 to 28

“But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”  (Matthew 16:23)

Who of us can really set aside our own yearnings, even to do the will of God, if we even knew the will of God?  Divine things are about the welfare and benefit of the human community.  Our Lord Jesus came among us to be a moral light;  to model for us the way we can live harmoniously with one another. We first must rid ourselves of all sordid self-centeredness and look for the good of all of us.  Looking out for the good of all of us is the Divine thing to do.  Anything short of community enhancement should be considered a stumbling block to us. At the end of the day, we need to each ask ourselves; “how have I made the world a better place?”

I sometimes stop and marvel at an ant colony.  The individual ant, is never concerned about the individual self, – only the life and wellbeing of the whole colony.  As fellow citizens and neighbors of the whole planet, we too should be concerned about the livelihood of the whole human population.

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 16: Year 2

Psalms 20, 21:1-7(8-14),  110:1-5(6-7), 116, 117; Job 9:1,10:1-9,16-22; Acts 11:1to18; and John 8:12to20

“Do you have eyes of flesh?  Do you see as humans see?”   (Job 10: 4)

There is something that I pondered on in each of our Biblical readings for today. There is Peter’s pondering on “The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us” (Acts 11:12).  This again is about the inclusiveness of God.  And then there is Jesus telling the Pharisees in the Gospel of John “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).  This light that our Lord Jesus speaks of is not the simple illumination as through the sun, but rather, through the light of the Son. It is a moral light of righteousness.

But what I want to share with you today are the words from the fable of Job where Job ponders, “Do you have eyes of flesh?  Do you see as humans see?”   (Job 10: 4)

This brought me back to a time when I visited the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Cape Fear Medical Center in Fayetteville , North Carolina, some years ago.  There was the baby of a parishioner whose name is Chloe.  She, at the time, was a premature infant.  I visited with this infant at least twice a week.  And I would pray, “Lord God, please see this baby through my eyes and behold her innocence and beauty.  I pray you strengthen the health of this baby that she will live and be healthy. Please God.”

When I prayed these words I could look in the incubator and see Chloe shiver and jerk as I prayed for her.  Later, when mom brought her to church she might have been a little unsettled at first but when I preached, she calmed down.  I think my voice was something that resonated with her.   I love it when mom brings her to church.

So this line form Job brings back for me the prayer I prayed for infant Chloe.  I wanted our distant and universal God to focus on this tiny, premature, infant by seeing her through my eyes as I gazed upon her while standing next to her incubator.  God heard my compassionate prayer and Chloe is doing fine.  Perhaps this is just another reason why God came to us in Christ Jesus.  In our Lord Jesus, God Almighty can, and does, see us through human eyes.  So now we can answer Job’s question.  Yes, God can see as humans see.  Moreover, I believe when any of us look upon another with love and compassion, God is looking also through our eyes of flesh.

So, I ask you to pray for someone you love while looking at them.  And in your prayer, ask God to see them through your eyes.

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