Author: John Thomas Frazier

Readings for Lancelot Andrewes Bishop and Scholar (September 26 1626)

Psalm 63:1-7 1 Timothy 2:1-7 Luke 11:1-4

“Lancelot Andrewes (1555-1626), Bishop of Winchester, was on the committee of scholars that produced the King James Translation of the Bible, and probably contributed more to that work than any other single person. It is accordingly no surprise to find him not only a devout writer but a learned and eloquent one, a master of English prose, and learned in Latin, Greek, Hebrew and eighteen other languages.”  (James Keifer)

Here I am going to deviate from the assigned readings for Lancelot Andrewes and use the opening of the Gospel of Luke as a segue into this Bishop.

“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.” (Luke 1:1 – 4)

Like Luke who was an educated man, a physician and Greek writer, Lancelot Andrewes too was an educated man who was devoted to annotating details of his own theology which was only discovered after his passing. “Andrewes was a very devout man, and one of his most admired works is his Preces Privatae (“Private Devotions”), an anthology from the Scriptures and the ancient liturgies, compiled for his own use. It illustrates his piety and throws light on the sources of his theology.”  (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 26)

All of us who believe in God have a theology.  Few of us have articulated it even though we weekly recite the Nicene Creed, but often it’s just keeping up with the Church service.  And even fewer of us have gone to the point of writing it down.  Luke did and so did Lancelot Andrewes, and so can you. If you believe there is a God, then you have a personal theology.

When I sit with people in spiritual counsel I often ask them to journal.  From many I get the eye roll.  But journaling is spiritual growth.  We are never a finished product.  We are always evolving. Journaling helps us to see our progress.  And who knows, after you have passed, the words you have put to paper may be life-changing for family and friends who come after you.  Such words may mean more to them than any material thing you might leave them.

 Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Readings forSergius Abbot of Holy Trinity (25 September 1392)

Proverbs 4:1-9 Psalm 87 1 John 2:15-17 Luke 8:16-21

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.”  (1 John 2:15 – 17)

To the people of Russia, Sergius is a national hero and an example of Russian spiritual life at its best.

Sergius was born around 1314, the son of a farmer. When he was twenty, he and his brother began to live as hermits in a forest near Moscow. Others joined them in what became the Monastery of the Holy Trinity, a center for the renewal of Russian Christianity. Pilgrims came from all Russia to worship and to receive spiritual instruction, advice, and encouragement. The Russians were at the time largely subservient to the neighboring (non-Christian) Tatar (or Tartar) people. Sergius rallied the people behind Prince Dimitri Donskoi, who defeated the Tatars in 1380 and established an independent Russia. (From James Kiefer and the Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 25)

It seems that Sergius followed the instructions of 1^st John about not loving the world.  He retreated into the forest and began a monastic order.  This kind of retreat happens from time to time in Christian history.  I am reminded of the Desert Fathers, of Benedict and others who got fed up with the deprived state of government.

“Sergius was simple and gentle in nature, mystical in temperament, and eager to ensure that his monks should serve the needs of their neighbors. He was able to inspire intense devotion to the Orthodox faith. He died in 1392, and pilgrims still visit his shrine at the monastery of Sergiyev Posad (known as Zagorsk in the Soviet era), which he founded in 1340.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 25)

We ourselves are a part of God’s creation.  We are placed among more of God’s Creation.  We should enjoy it but not worship it.  All glory and worship goes to God.  Sergius is yet another monastic who influenced local political powers to recognize and return to the liturgy of the Church as foundational to good order and in so doing grounded them in the hope of God’s hand in all their doings.  He was simple, gentle and mystical.  Sounds like he patterned himself after Jesus to me. 

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 20 Year 1

AM Psalm 78:1-39; PM Psalm 78:40-72 2 Kings 5:19-27; 1 Cor. 5:1-8; Matt. 5:27-37

“He went in and stood before his master; and Elisha said to him, ‘Where have you been, Gehazi?’ He answered, ‘Your servant has not gone anywhere at all.’ But he said to him, ‘Did I not go with you in spirit when someone left his chariot to meet you? Is this a time to accept money and to accept clothing, olive orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, and male and female slaves?” (2 Kings 5:25 – 26)

Gehazi examples for us a poor choice in character brought on by greed and envy.  He has every opportunity to receive the legacy that started with Elijah and passed on to Elisha. Gehazi would be next in line to receive it.  Elisha was already with Gehazi in spirit which is what he had asked of Elijah as he saw Elijah taken up by the chariots of fire.  But instead Gehazi forfeits his mentorship for some material things.

As life has it, one bad move often leads to another. Gehazi goes to Naaman to make him give up something for the cure he received and to obtain wealth for himself.  Then, he feels he has to lie to his master Elisha.  Oh what a tangle web we weave. My take-away in this story is to not devalue good mentors.  Gehazi was blessed to be in the tutelage of Elisha.  But he lost it.

Every human being should find two or more people they admire and then aspire to be like them in some way.  In this day and age we have the added advantage of books and the world wide web that can assist us with the personal attributes of just about anybody in the world, living or deceased. We can pattern parts of our lives after someone’s vocation, theology, habits and/or hobbies.  

In my own walk on this earth I meet people with unique expressions of their experiences. I am a copycat of sorts. Little idiosyncrasies that I find delightful in others I adopt for myself.  I pray that as I am more and more a composite of the good I perceive in others that I too will be a good person.  I am still a Christian under construction.  Jesus is the foundational person that I build on.  I work hard to not let greed, envy or strife lead me away from the personality of Jesus and others I want to be like.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 20 Year 1

AM Psalm 80; PM Psalm 77, [79] 2 Kings 5:1-19; 1 Cor. 4:8-21; Matt. 5:21-26

“But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, ‘I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy!”  (2 Kings 5:11)

Naaman is just like the rest of us. We not only know what we want God to do for us, we also know how we want God to do it.

Yet this is the same God who always surprises.  This is the same God who led the Israelites through the sea in search of the Promised Land.  Now this Commander of the army is acting on the information of a nameless servant girl who tells of a prophet who can cure him.

In our Second King’s story today God is using Elisha to cure Naaman but Naaman already has it in his head what his cure should look like. Also, Naaman has an ego.  He is irritated that Elisha does not come out to meet him but rather sends his servant out to give him instruction. It seems to Naaman that who he is (Naaman) is more important than what he wants (to be healed). Naaman says, “I thought that for me he would come out…”  Sometimes a few of us are Naaman.

I have been with people who ignored receptionist and clerks by walking past them and through doors to whomever they wanted to see. They, like Naaman, feel privileged or entitled. If I asked them about their lack of protocol the response usually equates to “I thought that for me,” it would be okay.

In this healing story it takes another nameless servant (besides the servant girl) to make Naaman realize that in order for him to be healed he first has to humble himself to obey the simple instruction he was given. The solution was not hard but it required Naaman to put aside what he thought was important and to do as he was told.  This is yet another example of God working for us, through us. What is God trying hard to do for you through nameless people?

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Eucharistic Readings for Sunday Proper 20 of Year C

Amos 8:4-7 Psalm 113 1 Timothy 2:1-7 Luke 16:1-13

“He answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.”  (Luke 16:6)

In this world of the power of money we should always remember to let compassion rule over cash. I think we only created money so that trade for much needed items, from someone else, could be conducted with a less perishable medium.  Live stock, olive oil, grain, fish, fruit and other food items will not hold up for long.  Currency in the form of coins, on the other hand, will often last a lifetime and can even be handed down to following generations. But money was always about the ability to take care of the needs of the family and community.  This was the idea of people fulfilling their needs and not so much about profit. Money was the means to a needed end.

Then we began to make money the end rather than the means. We began to pursue money for its own end.  Money soon began to be the object of worship. The new replacement priests are the people who have the most money. People with little or no money were people of little or no value. We somehow forgot that money was just a tool for getting what we needed. We forgot we needed each other more than the goods that money would buy. We forgot about being good to those who we knew had less wealth than we did. We should always consider our own fallen state. We are no better than those people we manage or those who have less money than we do. We are all without money in God’s eyes. After his exposure the crafty manager in our Gospel wants to be remembered for how he put money aside in order to help his neighbors. Right now we are creating the memory that others will have of us. Our priorities will be evidenced by where we put people in relation to wealth.  We can’t have it both ways.  We can’t serve God and money. 

This decision to be nice to people only came about when the shrewd manager was told about the accounting that was about to take place. This accounting is going to take place with every one of us.  This is a good time for a review of my personal creed again: “I trust in the Creating Word, through the Holy Spirit of the Incarnate Word, in whom we live and move and love and have our being, and to whom we must give an account.”  And give an account we all must.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Eucharistic Readings for Saint Matthew: 21 September: Today is Saint Matthew’s Day

Psalm 119:33-40; Proverbs 3:1-6; 2 Timothy 3:14 – 17; Matthew 9:9-13

“As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew [Levi] sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax-collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’  But when he heard this, he said, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”  (Matthew 9: 9 – 13)

How many times have we or someone we know sat a job they didn’t like and didn’t want and never knew why they continued on. Perhaps bills, family responsibility or any number of reasons tethered them to a job they neither liked nor wanted.

 In occupied Israel some unfortunate, fatherless boys were drafted into becoming tax collectors for Rome. They made their living skimming off the top.  They we ostracized by the Jewish community as being in league with the enemy even though for the most part they had no choice. Many of us today are in employment that is at some level necessary for the community and our household bottom line, but not what we feel is the best use of our gifts. Jesus understands this and says “Follow Me.”  While I don’t think this means quit your job I do feel that inviting Jesus into your home and heart, as Matthew did, has two outcomes.

First, you are comforted in knowing that at least Jesus sees your full potential. This could be the beginning of a new way for you to live into who God made you to be. Matthew went from being a forced tax collector to writer of the Gospel that we set as the first book in our New Testament.

Second, you will be criticized by those who weren’t helping you in the first place. Sometimes I see such criticism as validation that I am doing the right thing. Jesus was never on the side of popular opinion.  Jesus also criticized the criticizers for not getting involved and showing mercy for those having to collect taxes. When he says, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.’  I don’t think they got it and sometimes I don’t think we get it either. And to our not understanding Jesus says, “Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” Thank You Jesus for calling me.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 19 Year 1

AM Psalm 69:1-23(24-30)31-38; PM Psalm 73 2 Kings 1:2-17; 1 Cor. 3:16-23; Matt. 5:11-16

 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14- 16)

I don’t know of many cities built on a hill, except for maybe Jerusalem and maybe Denver Colorado. But even then, they both sit in sort of mountain valleys.   For the most part cities evolved from water sources and valley trade routes.  However I can remember riding with my dad in his moving van when I was a young boy and as we approached our home city of Nashville, Tennessee after dark, he pointed out the glow of light just over the hill.  He told me that it was the light coming from Nashville.  I can remember being excited about finally getting back home after weeks on the road.

It feels good to be around a welcome light. Jesus says that we who follow him are the light of the world. Such a light as we are should not be hidden but rather, be a beacon to all as a witness to the goodness of God.  We are what the world needs. We must let our light shine and let people know our light comes from God through Jesus Christ. Then people will have at least the opportunity to know a better way to go about their lives.  They may get a hint of what it would be like to have heaven on earth, now and in our own time. Thank You Jesus.  Let your Light shine.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 19 Year 1

AM Psalm [70], 71; PM Psalm 74 1 Kings 22:29-45; 1 Cor. 2:14-3:15; Matt. 5:1-10

Matthew 5:1–12

When Jesus* saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

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

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely* on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

In conferring with Douglas R. A. Hare in “Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching: Matthew.”  Hare says about the word Blessed that “While such a nuance cannot be fully excluded in a Greek Gospel, it is important to remember that Jesus spoke in a Semitic context. The meaning he intended in the original beatitudes undoubtedly reflects the function of ashre in the Hebrew Scriptures, for example Ps. 1:1, where the happiness is less subjective that objective.”  Happiness, he contends, “derives from a right relationship with God…..For this reason it is probably better to retain “blessed” as the English rendering because of the word’s religious associations. (p. 35 – 36)

All that said, for me, the Beatitudes guide my life with the promise of hope. I hold out trying to be as compassionate and as prayerful as I can be hoping beyond hope that God will not forget me and that I will not forget God.

 Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Today I will ponder from our Great Cloud of Witnesses and from James Kiefer as we look at the life of Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld (pronounced HAM-mar-shold)

My Selected Readings for Dag Hammarskjold

1 Chronicles 25:1,6–8; Psalm 47; Ephesians 2:17–22; Matthew 5:1–12

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

“Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat, economist, and author, known particularly for the way in which his Christian faith informed his global peacemaking.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 18) No doubt then that Hammarskjold should be called a child of God given that he worked hard to bring about peace around the globe.

Personally I prefer the Spanish translation of verse 9 of this chapter of Matthew. It reads, “Dichosos los que trabajan por la paz,porque Dios los llamará hijos suyos.” Roughly translated it says blessed are those who work for peace, they will be called children of God.”  It might be nitpicking but in the English if peace is not actually accomplished you can’t earn the title peacemaker.  However in the Spanish you “work” for peace.  No one knows for sure if their efforts will bring about the intended results, whether it’s planning a party or bringing about peace.  All we can do is work towards the goal.  I applaud Hammarskjöld’s efforts and his example of good leadership.

“Hammarskjöld was elected the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, serving from April 1953 until his death on September 18, 1961″ (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 18)

From James Kiefer: “For years, he had kept a private journal, writing down his thoughts on the Lordship of Christ and its meaning for his life. After his death, the journal was published under the title Markings. Two extracts follow.

God does not die on the day when we cease to believe in a personal deity, but we die on the day when our lives cease to be illumined by the steady radiance, renewed daily, of a wonder, the source of which is beyond all reason.

He who has surrendered himself to it knows that the Way ends on The Cross–even when it is leading through the jubilation of Gennesaret or the triumphal entry into Jerusalem.”  (provided by James Kiefer)

“Hammarskjöld was killed pursuing peace in the Congo, when his plane mysteriously crashed on September 18, 1961. Many people— including President Truman—believed that the plane had been deliberately shot down. He was posthumously awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 18)

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+                                                                                                                     

Readings for Hildegard 1179

Psalm 104:25-34  Sirach 43:1-12 John 3:16-21

“I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will praise my God while I have my being.” (Psalm 104:34)

Today I will move from the Daily Office to remember Hildegard as she is chronicled in the Great Cloud of Witnesses.

“Hildegard of Bingen, born in 1098 in the lush Rhineland Valley, was a mystic, poet, composer, dramatist, doctor, and scientist. Her parents’ tenth child, she was tithed to the Church and raised by the anchoress Jutta in a cottage near the Benedictine monastery of Disibodenberg. (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 17)

I feel drawn to people with multiple gifts, especially if they include mysticism and music.  Hildegard was also respected by Bernard of Clairvaux which as a Knight Templar myself I feel that I too should lean in and listen to her more closely. “In 1147, Bernard of Clairvaux recommended her first book of visions, Scivias, to Pope Eugenius III, leading to papal authentication at the Synod of Trier. Hildegard became famous, eagerly sought for counsel, a correspondent of kings and queens, abbots and abbesses, archbishops and popes.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 17)  So why not smart people of today listen to her as well?

Hildegard crossed barriers that were meant to keep women out. “She carried out four preaching missions in northern Europe, unprecedented activity for a woman. She practiced medicine, focusing on women’s needs; published treatises on natural science and philosophy; and wrote a liturgical drama, The Play of the Virtues, in which personified virtues sing their parts and the devil, condemned to live without music, can only speak. For Hildegard, music was essential to worship. Her liturgical compositions, unusual in structure and tonality, were described by contemporaries as “chant of surpassing sweet melody” and “strange and unheard-of music.”” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 17)

I particularly share her feeling that music was/is essential to worship.  Not everybody wants to hear this but I believe music assists in guiding our souls to the Spirit of God.   I also marvel that in her pondering the devil must live in a world without music. If nothing else encourages us to appreciate music this should. “Hildegard lived in a world accustomed to male governance. Yet, within her convents, and to a surprising extent outside them, she exercised a commanding spiritual authority based on confidence in her visions and considerable political astuteness. When she died in 1179, at 81, she left a rich legacy which speaks eloquently across the ages. .” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for September 17)

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to and through God’s people and ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+