Author: John Thomas Frazier

Readings for John Mason Neale: Priest, Scholar and Translator (7 August 1866)

2 Chronicles 20:20-21 Psalm 106:1-5 Matthew 13:44-52

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matt. 13: 45 – 46)

“John Mason Neale was born in London in 1818, studied at Cambridge, where he also served as tutor and chaplain, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1842. Chronic ill health made parish ministry impracticable, but in 1846, he was made warden of Sackville College, a charitable residence for the poor, which position he held for the rest of his life.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 7)

Neale was ordained a priest but career parochial duties were beyond his abilities.  What was not beyond his abilities was his love and legacy of musical worship.  “With such familiar words as “Good Christian men, rejoice” (The Hymnal 1982, #107), “Come, ye faithful, raise the strain” (#199, 200), “All glory, laud, and honor” (#154, 155), “Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle” (#165, 166), and “Creator of the stars of night” (#60), he greatly enriched our hymnody.”  (Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 7)

Jesus points out that when we find our true appreciation of what our gifts are and where our gifts meet the world’s needs we are truly willing to let go of all we have in order to obtain it. Such is the parable of those who sold all they had in order to have what they most sought. True happiness is often a matter of choice. Let go and receive or just watch and stand still.  What is it that would cause you to let go of all you have in this world in order to have greater happiness?

John Mason Neale did not have a long life.  But he had a valued life.  And he valued hymnody. And we are beneficiaries of his passion. I doubt that he knew that he was leaving a legacy. He just met the world with what God gave him.

Seeking your passion may be more difficult than just selling all you have and obtaining it. “Neale faced active persecution for his liturgical and theological principles. He was forced to resign his first parish due to disagreements with his bishop. He was physically attacked several times including at a funeral of one of the Sisters. Mobs threatened both him and his family, believing him to be a secret agent of the Vatican attempting to destroy the Church of England from within.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 7) People, even Christians, can be so cruel at times.  I ponder today if such a person was to be in our midst today, would anyone stand with such a person in their dignity, especially those of us who profess to be Christians and respect the dignity of every person?

After a short but dedicated life John Mason Neale died on the Feast of the Transfiguration in 1866, at the age of 46, leaving a lasting mark on our worship. Thank You Jesus.

Let us ponder anew what the Almighty can do.  John+

Eucharistic Readings for the Transfiguration August 6

Exodus 34:29-35;   Psalm 99;  2 Peter 1:13-21;     Luke 9:28-36

“Then from the cloud came a voice that said, ‘This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” (Luke 9:35)

This Gospel reading tells us that Jesus takes with him Peter, James and John up a mountain and is Transfigured before them.  They got to see the reality of who Jesus is.  They got to see Moses and Elijah, the Law and the Prophets, stand before Jesus, God Incarnate.

Peter is so moved by this experience that he speaks out of his hysteria about making booths to represent the three of them, Moses, Elijah and Jesus.  The Presence of God touched all of their senses.  The cloud overshadowed them causing them to breathe in God as well as touch their skin.  The vision of what was taking place pierced their eyes making an indelible mark on their minds. And finally, the very voice of God spoke, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”

Peter never forgot this event. Even though he would claim not to know Jesus at the arrest of Jesus, but the knowledge of who Jesus is was never forgot.  Later in his second letter Peter would write, “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved,^* with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.” (2 Peter 1:16 – 18)

The Gospels of Matthew (Mt. 3:17) and Mark (Mk. 1:11) also carry the words “You are my Son in whom I am well pleased,” but the words seem to be directed at Jesus only.  In any case, we have the additional words today of “Listen to him.”  This “listen to him” is understood to be obey him in the Hebrew context and I might add, ours as well.

This validation of who Jesus is has been handed down to you and me. This Gospel always comes up on the last Sunday of Epiphany as a segue into Lent regardless of the Year (Matt. 17:1 -19; Mk. 9:2 – 9; and Lk. 9: 28 – 36).  For many years I preached the “Pilot Light” sermon wherein I told of the cleaning of an old gas stove used in my mother’s restaurant in the 1950’s.  In this restaurant we catered mostly to college students. But there was always a Summer slowdown when school was out.  This was a time for cleaning the old stove.  The stove had to be disassembled to make a thorough cleaning.  I was young then but I was shown the “Pilot Light.”  I was amazed that from this little flicker of light that resembled a small candle burning in cave, made possible the cooking of all the foods for the whole year for students who came from two universities. It was during the cleansing and the de-greasing of that stove that the light was carried to start other lights in order that they might do their work.  How appropriate for coming to Lent. Also, how appropriate to see who Jesus really is, the Light revealed.  I like singing “This Little Light of Mine” when I use this sermon.  Let us then listen to him and obey him.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to (and through) God’s people.  John+

Daily Office Readings for Monday Proper 13 of Year 1

AM Psalm 80; PM Psalm 77, [79] 2 Samuel 7:1-17; Acts 18:1-11; Mark 8:11-21

Acts:

“There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.”  (Acts 18: 2 – 3)

Sometimes we need to back off the readings and remember the context of it all. Acts is written by Luke, of the Gospel Luke.  Luke was a physician, a doctor.  He obviously travels with Paul or meets with him from time to time. It’s always good to have a doctor in the house.

In this passage we discover that Paul is a tentmaker. I find it curious that this was not mentioned before now.  This occupational information comes in handy as he meets Aquila and his wife Priscilla.  Aquila is a tentmaker.  So the two men have a number of things in common. They are both Jews, they both speak the same language and they both happen to have the same vocation, that of tentmaker.

From this we see that Luke the physician and Paul the tentmaker continued to be the people they were trained to be while also doing the work of ministry – of spreading the Gospel.  I am also reminded that Simon Peter continued to be a fisherman while also defending the Gospel of Jesus.

From my beginnings in ministry this would have been my preferred path for preaching the Gospel. In hindsight I wish I had finished my Seminary training and then pursued a vocation in music, perhaps teaching music in elementary school or high school. Maybe it’s not too late.  I will still be a priest, just not the rector of a parish. I too must ponder anew what the Almighty can do.

John+

Pondering Mass Shootings:

This is a special and additional comment regarding two mass shootings that took place over this weekend; (2 – 3 August 2019): one was in El Paso, Texas and the other in Dayton, Ohio.  A total of twenty nine dead and dozens wounded at this writing.

Guns seem to be the preferred method of carrying out this sadness.  However, when such evil is in the heart there are a variety of ways to destroy: bombs, poisons, vehicles, mass transit, and so on.  The first thing to address is: why is this evil in the heart in the first place?  Once we address the misguided intentions of those who want to do such a thing we can begin to curve or even eradicate such violence.  The question I always ponder about such horror is, “who was the pastor of the alleged perpetrator?”  What spiritual advice was given either in sermons or in personal counsel that caused such violence, or was ineffective in preventing it? 

I am told by family and friends that not everybody has a pastor.  To this I say, “Yes, I see.”

John+

Eucharistic Readings for Sunday Proper 13 of Year C Track 2

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23 Psalm 49:1-11 Colossians 3:1-11 Luke 12:13-21

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you.” (Luke 12:20)

This passage is taken from the parable of the “Rich Fool.”  This parable is used by Jesus to show a younger brother that his desire for wealth made wealth his idol. Moreover, he would do well to not worry about material things but rather the kingdom of heaven.

To be clear the rich man in the parable is not an evil man.  He has not cheated his workers or stolen anything.  However, he has benefited from the sun, the soil, and the rains in due season.  Because of this trifecta of blessings he obtained wealth.  And this wealth becomes his god and begins to own him.  It has him talking to himself. It has him planning for himself only. It has him living for himself only.  And finally, it has him even congratulating himself.  Where is the Creating, Redeeming and Sanctifying God in his plan, his life, his living and his praise?

Jesus comes into the world when money comes into the world.  Before the coins of currency time was a big issue.  People had to trade before crops spoiled. And there was great dependence on God for tomorrow’s sustenance. Money begins to avert our dependence on God.  Money then became a god.

All around the rich fool were the poor.  But apparently it never occurred to him to share his stores with them.  I know people who don’t have much. And by the way they distribute what little they do have, they probably never will.  But they give to the needy, They give to the children of the poor. They give to their church.  They are rich in the Kingdom of God! Instead of being rich fools, they are the holy saints of heaven that will dwell in eternal light.  Because they are looking after the poor and lonely in this world, God will take care of them in the next.  Thank You Jesus.

I have worked with families who fought bitterly over wealth at the time of the death of an older family member.  It is not pretty. I think what is saddest about it is the concern and energy put into wanting the money and property of the deceased. I have also seen the property fights regarding divorce settlements, again, not pretty. Instead of thinking about what we need, we wonder about what we can get. We want to build larger barns.

We should focus our desire on is the Kingdom of heaven and go back in our corporate spiritual ancestry and learn to re-trust in God for tomorrow’s sustenance.  God is God before time began. God was God when we depended on the short life of crops and livestock.  That same God is our God today.  Just because we have coins, currency, credit cards, stocks and bonds we are not out from under the domain of God.  This is the God before time. This is the God of now. And, this is the God that always will be.  This God is watching how we use our borrowed resources during the little time we are here.  We should not want to be so much concerned with who will get what remains of our wealth after we are gone. Rather, we should be concerned with where our soul remains after we are gone. This very night your life could be demanded of you.

Let us seek ye first the Kingdom of God. John+

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 12 Year 1

AM Psalm 75, 76; PM Psalm 23, 27 2 Samuel 5:22-6:11; Acts 17:16-34; Mark 8:1-10

Acts: In this Acts reading Paul is questioned about this new faith that none had heard of before.  He explains, “The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things.” (Acts 17: 24 – 25)

Our parish put on a play in the summer of 2013 as a fund raiser for our fifty year celebration that was to take place in the following January 2014.  In this play I was the grumpy old grandpa.  There were several actors but the woman directing the play was not in the play.  She did control the lighting and gave us cues from off-stage. I learned that the evidence of her existence is the performance of that play.  The audience did not see her but they enjoyed her work.  That we were a success is evidenced by her efforts.  This is how we know of God. 

Paul says of God, “For In him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17: 28).  Not all we humans act in accord with God’s direction.  We stray. But since we are created in God’s Image, we are the offspring of God.  We cannot see God therefore we should not try to make anything with our hands to be God’s Image.  There is a hidden Creator.  We cannot see our Creator but the Creator is evidenced by our continuing on the world stage.

We also should not substitute God for any other created thing. After all, we too are among the created. Why should one created creature honor, praise or worship another created creature or thing?

“Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals.”  (Acts 17: 29)  Today we can add to Paul’s list of other created things.  We could add things like our electronic devices, position, power, other people, the value of our own importance, and of course, money.  Our assurance that these things, including ourselves, are not God is the fact that we can see them, touch them and manipulate them.  This means they are not God, nor are they a replacement for God.

Alfred Hitchcock (Director), and later Stan Lee (Writer), often made cameo appearances in their movies. I believe God did the same thing in the person of Jesus.  This is why I am glad I am a Christian.  Christianity gives me a tangible way to relate with the Unseen, a small way to begin to know the Unknown.  Thank You Jesus.

Let us ponder anew what the Almighty is directing us to do. John+

Today we remember Samuel Ferguson Missionary Bishop for West Africa, 1916

Readings for Samuel Ferguson Missionary Bishop for West Africa, 1916

Sirach 51:13-26  Psalm 119:9-16   2 Peter 1:16-21 John 3:1-15

“First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”  (2 Peter 1:20 – 21)

I really love these words from 2 Peter.  I have it read at every graduation of our local Education for Ministry closing Eucharist in late May.  It speaks of our seeking God and of God providing.  We have to knock, but the door will be opened.  Samuel Ferguson believed in seeking and learning.

 “Samuel David Ferguson was the first African American bishop in The Episcopal Church accorded the full honors due his position. While there had been other African American bishops before him, Bishop Ferguson was the first to be seated in the House of Bishops, and he took his role in the House with utmost sincerity and integrity, as an example to those around him. From celebrating the opening Eucharist of the 1910 General Convention to attending society events in the South, Bishop Ferguson modeled a dignity and strength that communicated his equal stature as an Episcopal bishop despite the discrimination he faced.”  (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 2)

Bishop Ferguson emphasized education first and foremost. “Consistent with his first vocation as a teacher, Ferguson emphasized the importance of education throughout his ministry. He founded schools throughout Liberia, assisted financially by the Women’s Auxiliary [later to be the United Thank Offering (UTO) of The Episcopal Church Women], and his passion for education influenced other parts of West Africa.”   (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 2)

My own spiritual inquiries came to me as a result of secular undergraduate studies.  At one point I took philosophy and chemistry during the same period. It was then that I pondered which came first: thought, or atomic structure? I came out on the side of thought and therefore, confirmation of the Great “I AM.” “Ferguson believed that establishing a strong spiritual and educational foundation was the best way for Liberia’s young people to transform society.” (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 2) I believe establishing a strong spiritual and educational foundation is the best way for ALL young people to transform not only their society but indeed, the world.

“Bishop Ferguson remained in Liberia for the rest of his life. He died in Monrovia on August 2, 1916.”  (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for August 2)

I like this remembrance of Bishop Ferguson because it makes manifest the truthful saying “give a man a fish and you feed him for the day; teach him to fish and you have fed him for life.”  Teaching, I believe, is the most important gift one person can bestow upon another. “Teacher,” is how Mary Magdalene identified Jesus after he called her name after the resurrection (John 20:16).

I believe the most important vocation in the world is that of teaching.  The men and women who assist in shaping the minds of the future of our planet can’t be over emphasized.  Personally, and currently in America, I don’t think we treat them with the respect they should be accorded in either financial compensation or political clout. While we do hear reports of less than satisfactory teachers occasionally, most are decent, caring, loving and very smart tutors of our young ones and I thank God for them.  Teachers teach us to seek and learn, to knock and to enter.

Let us ponder anew what the Almighty can do (and is doing). John+

Daily Office Readings for Thursday Proper 12 of Year 1

AM Psalm [70], 71; PM Psalm 74 2 Samuel 4:1-12; Acts 16:25-40; Mark 7:1-23

21 You strengthen me more and more; *
you enfold and comfort me,

22 Therefore I will praise you upon the lyre for your
faithfulness, O my God; *
I will sing to you with the harp, O Holy One of Israel.

23 My lips will sing with joy when I play to you, *
and so will my soul, which you have redeemed.

(Psalm 71: 21 – 23)

All of the readings for today are interesting but these words of the Psalmist hold a special place for me right now.  Some of you may recall that at one time I was pondering “faith, fitness and music.”  While I have restricted my posted pondering to just faith, or theological studies, I continue with my pondering habits of fitness and music. And these words today strike a special “chord” with me today (pun intended).

Yesterday I shared with you how God sent a friend to me when I needed him and as a result I became an Episcopalian, and now a priest in the Episcopal Church.  It is happening again. God has sent a friend to me to keep me going with guitar improvements.  This dear friend comes to our Wednesday night healing service and then spends time with me playing chords on our guitars after the service.  What a blessing!

I led my small gathering last night in singing “Let us break bread together….” at the healing service without guitars or any instruments.  I like music.  I realize not everybody does. But I believe God wants us to sing regardless of ability.  So as David the Psalmist says, “I will sing to you with the harp, O Holy One of Israel.” Of course my harp is a guitar.  I told one of my parishioners that my guitar is coming soon to the healing service. I pray it has a healing effect.

My message to you is this.  God has a plan.  God is watching and placing people where they need to be in order to make the plan work.  I’ve already told you about God’s eternal patience.  God works in incremental steps, a little bit at a time. Be aware of who comes to you or who you are sent to.  How do you know it’s a God send?  Well, what did you pray for?  It’s up to God “how or who” God chooses to do it.  But God answers prayer.

I think God wants me to make music now. Therefore, “My lips will sing with joy when I play to you, and so will my soul, which you have redeemed.”  (Psalm 71: 23)

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to (and through) God’s people. John+

Readings for Ignatius Loyola; Mystic, Educator, Preacher, and Founder of the Jesuits (31 July 1556)

1 Corinthians 10:31 – 11:1 Psalm 34:1-8 Luke 9:57-62

“I called in my affliction and the Lord heard me and saved me from all my troubles.” (Psalm 34:6)

July 31 is the Remembrance of Ignatius of Loyola Priest and Monastic, 1556

“Ignatius was born into a noble Basque family in 1491. In his autobiography, he tells us, “Up to his twenty-sixth year, he was a man given over to the vanities of the world and took special delight in the exercise of arms with a great and vain desire of winning glory.” An act of reckless heroism at the Battle of Pamplona in 1521 led to his being seriously wounded. During his convalescence at Loyola, Ignatius experienced a profound spiritual awakening. Following his recovery and an arduous period of retreat, a call to be Christ’s knight in the service of God’s kingdom was deepened and confirmed.” (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for July 31)

I joined the Episcopal Church through Baptism at the Easter Vigil of 1980 at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church in Memphis, Tennessee.  I was going through a divorce that brought me to my knees.  I was in spiritual despair.  All I could remember was my formative years at St Vincent de Paul Catholic School in Nashville, Tennessee as a child.  But that was enough to make me believe that the Church would help me with my shaken state of mind.  I got with a military friend and he took me to St Anne’s.  The rest is history. I too, like Ignatius, began a new journey as a knight of Christ.

It has been, and still is, a long journey.  I stayed in the Marines, got divorced and later married again. The Psalmist’ words have meaning for me. “I called in my affliction and the Lord heard me and saved me from all my troubles.” I am no Ignatius but I do have a ministry that I love.

I began to attend college when off duty throughout the years and I stayed in church from the 1980’s on.  I have been up and down with God. But God has remained faithful with me.  I am thankful for the love of God in my life. Ignatius too, had hills to climb before his call to ministry.

“The fact that Ignatius was an unschooled layman made him suspect in the eyes of church authorities and led him, at the age of 37, to study theology at the University of Paris in preparation for the priesthood. While there, Ignatius gave the Exercises to several of his fellow students; and in 1534, together with six companions, he took vows to live lives of strict poverty and to serve the needs of the poor. Thus, what later came to be known as the Society of Jesus was born.” (From Great Cloud of Witnesses for July 31) This is the birth of the Jesuits.

I am amazed at how many of the Saint’s lives are like my own, and like yours also. I did not grow up “Churched.”  It was sadness that brought me back to God. My Marine friend was in the right place at the right time in my life. This is Gods doing and it truly is marvelous in my eyes. Put your trust in God and God will never abandon you, in this world or the next.

Let us ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John+

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday Proper 12 Year 1

AM Psalm 61, 62; PM Psalm 68:1-20(21-23)24-36 2 Samuel 3:6-21; Acts 16:6-15; Mark 6:30-46

“He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” (Mark 6: 31)  And: “After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.” (Mark 6:46)

The Gospel passage we have for today is sandwiched between Sabbath times.  After the apostles returned from all they had done and taught, but before they participated in feeding the five thousand, Jesus called them to rest, a Sabbath time so as to refresh themselves.

Likewise, after they fed the five thousand he personally dismissed the people and sent his apostles away in a boat.  After the dismissal he himself  again went up on the mountain to pray.

Recently we have had plenty of the Martha and Mary story.  While there is a time for the doing things of Martha, this message is about the importance of reflection time like that that Mary took when Jesus came to visit them. For me, it’s my pondering time.

Many people ask me to pray for them.  They think that I have a special connection with God. But I do not, at least not one that anyone can’t have. My special job is to inform people that God seeks time with them.  God wants to hear from the people in the pews and the people in the streets.  My priestly job is to let people know this good news, this valuable information.

I let them know that they don’t really need anything special, just time set aside for the purpose of being with God. They don’t need a special cross, a Bible, a Prayer Book, Beads, an Icon or painting or a particular piece of music. It is not that these things don’t help, they do.  But the most important element is time and to be still and know that God is God, and when called near, God is with you. To quote verse 10 of Psalm 46, “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God.”  There is something about being still that gives God the opportunity to have a more intimate relationship with you and to focus on who, and where you are in your life. Do not think that God cannot be this close with everyone on earth, God can and wants to. God is all encompassing.

One of the things I like to do before each service of the Holy Eucharist is to offer a kind of settling-in prayer as a way of helping the people in the pews prepare themselves for the service that is about to take place.  It reads, “O Almighty God, who pourest out on all who desire it the spirit of grace and of supplication:  Deliver us, when we draw near to thee, from coldness of heart and wanderings of mind, that with steadfast thoughts and kindled affections we may worship thee in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”  It is found on page 833 of the Book of Common Prayer; prayer number 64.  And while I said we do not need a prayer book, or Bible, or Icons or anything in our “alone with God time,” it is nice to have these things for public worship to draw us in with God as the Body of Christ. Jesus kept them together both in the deserted place and on the boat.  We need our alone time and our gathered time with God in Christ Jesus. Remember, we are the Church either way.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to (and through) God’s people. John+

Readings for the feast of Martha and Mary of Bethany

Psalm 36:1-5 Romans 12:9-13  Luke 10:38–42

“Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.” (Luke 10: 38 – 39)

Both the Gospels of Luke and John share a scene of Jesus’ visit to the home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. In both, Mary is defended by Jesus.  Martha, it seems, acts as the one responsible for getting things done.  My guess is that she may be head of household, even in her day.  Realizing that Jesus did not write any Gospel, and those that did, did it decades after his resurrection and ascension. Therefore, I don’t believe Jesus condemns Martha’s efforts or suggests that we all should just sit around pondering only (even me). We need to be both as the situation requires.

“The devotion and friendship of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus have been an example of fidelity and service to the Lord. Their hospitality and kindness, and Jesus’ enjoyment of their company, show us the beauty of human friendship and love at its best. And the raising of Lazarus by Jesus is a sign of hope and promise for all who are in Christ.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for July 29)

This day is also chosen to remember the day our Church awoke to what God has always been doing in humanity. Our ordination of women only follows the ordination of Li Tim Oi (AKA Florence) “On January 25, 1944, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Bishop Hall ordained her priest, the first woman so ordained in the Anglican Communion.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for January 24)

So our Church chose the remembrance of Martha and Mary to ordain women.  “On July 29, 1974, the feast of Martha and Mary of Bethany, eleven women deacons were ordained to the priesthood at the Church of the Advocate, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “We are certain that the Church needs women in priesthood to be true to the gospel understanding of human unity in Christ,” explained the eleven ordinands in a public statement.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for July 29)  This ordination was contested by General Convention and “On September 16, 1976, the General Convention voted to amend the canons to stipulate that both women and men are eligible for ordination. The House of Bishops determined that each woman ordained before 1977 could function as a priest after a “completion of the ritual acts” performed in Philadelphia or Washington.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for July 29) So the ordinations stand. Thank you Jesus.

In my humble opinion, the ordination of women is really about our Church coming to its senses.  It has been God’s plan all along. I remind us again that it was Mary Magdalene who first brought the word that “He is Risen.”  And like those first apostles, we refuse to believe because of the sex of the messenger.   We are just slow, but God is eternally patient.  Thank You Jesus.

Let us ponder anew what God has always been doing.  John+