Author: John Thomas Frazier

Eucharistic Readings for the 4^th Sunday in Lent Year C

Joshua 5:9-12  Psalm 32  2 Corinthians 5:16-21  Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Luke

“But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger!”  (Luke 15:17)

My Pondering

This is a very popular parable in the New Testament and unique to Luke.  I like to call chapter 15 of Luke the lost chapter.  This is not that the chapter was lost but that it is about lost possessions.  First a sheep is lost.  Next a coin is lost.  And lastly, we have the lost son.

Within the Lost Son (or Prodigal Son) parable there are several points that can be preached on, for example the two sons can represent God’s promise to Israel in the older son; the older son’s attitude is yet another topic.  The Father welcoming back the wayward son is still another.  But my focus is on the younger son “coming to himself.”

I have an adult child who suffers from addiction.  My wife and I suffered greatly with the trials and tribulations we went through wanting her to live a sober life.  We wanted it for her (and just maybe for us too).  It was not until she decided that enough was enough that she got help and turned her life around.  I thank Jesus every day for her continued recovery.  I also let her know all the time how proud we are of her.  She has siblings that also support her in this process.  However it was not until she “came to herself” that she was able to say to herself I will go and get help and stop this tragic life I’m living.  And she was received with open arms by her support group and by her mother and me.

In life many of us will get out of sync with how God has made us. It’s like  a car being out of timing.   Sometimes I think it’s a matter of moving faster or slower than the natural pace God has timed us with.  And sometimes it’s a matter of the bad influences of addiction or wayward people or both.  In any case, we fall out of sync. We fall away from our natural rhythms and need to be tuned up.  We often can’t do it ourselves but just knowing we need adjustment is a good beginning.  The self-talk that the lost son did is a good example of acknowledging we are going in the wrong direction and need to turn around and go home or to a recognized place of safety.  It’s a personal thing but each of us needs to ponder anew what we are doing.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Creating Word is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Readings for John Donne: Priest, Poet, and Preacher (31 March 1631)

Psalm 16 Wisdom 7:24–8:1 John 5:19-24

Wisdom

“Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things; in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of God, and prophets;” (Wisdom of Solomon 7:27)

Words of John Donne:

“Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind. And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls: It tolls for thee.”

“These words are familiar to many; their author, John Donne, though less well known, is one of the greatest of English poets. In his own time, he was the best-known preacher in the Church of England.”   (From Great Cloud of Witnesses)

My Pondering

John Donne’s day is 31 March (Tomorrow at this writing).  But that is a Sunday this year and I will do the Eucharistic Readings on tomorrow the 31^st.  So I thought I would go ahead and ponder about John Donne today.

From James Keifer we get, “But the evidence of (Dunne’s) poetry is that, long before his ordination, and probably beginning with his marriage, his thoughts were turned toward holiness, and he saw in his wife Anne (as Dante had earlier seen in Beatrice) a glimpse of the glory of God, and in human love a revelation of the nature of Divine Love. (James Keifer http://satucket.com/lectionary/John_Donne.htm)

While The Wisdom of Solomon speaks of Wisdom as feminine, it must be remembered that when God was planning the arrival of Jesus it began through a woman, Mary.  And throughout the Bible there were women who changed the direction of our relationship with God from human ways to God’s way. I think of Rebecca switching out Esau for Jacob in Genesis and Rahab assisting Joshua’s spies, and many others. We men have for too long turned a blind eye to what God is doing for all people specifically through the faith, devotion and love of women.

John Donne realized this in his wife Anne. And God worked through her to John Dunne. The Spirit of Wisdom is still as active as she ever was, moving through us and to us if we, like Dunne, listen and wake up to the alarm bell and really understand for whom the bell tolls.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Daily Office Readings for Friday; Week 3 of Lent; Year 1

AM Psalm 95[*] & 88; PM Psalm 91, 92 Jer. 11:1-8,14-20; Rom. 6:1-11; John 8:33-47

John

“Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own, but he sent me.” (John 8:42)

My Pondering

If God was our Father we would love Jesus, and all God’s Children.  Moving beyond Christianity, any faith or religious tradition that considers the Creator is the Parent of all creation and especially humanity, must understand that God is all about love. And this love is for all creation. We are the work of the Creator.  The Creator loves the created and wants the created to love the extent of creation. This is why Jesus says that if we recognized God as our Father we would love Jesus.  Not necessarily because he is Jesus but because we can see him as another child of God.

The other part of this sentence is that people are put in our path to love.  “He sent me.” Jesus said. People may not necessarily be put in our path to love us.  But rather, they are put in our path for us to love them.  Jesus spoke to people who knew that the Law required them to love one’s neighbor as one loves one’s self.  They failed to do that.  And Jesus points that out.  By not loving him, they are in violation of the Law of Moses.

Jesus further points out that He (Jesus) is not from here but is visiting.  He had to tell them that because they could not tell that he was different.  They should have because not like other people Jesus was loving to everybody.  That’s odd.  It was odd then and is odd today.  We just don’t see people who love everybody no matter what. They could not tell that Jesus was an “alien” from heaven. And it might have been the plan from heaven all along, that because they could not tell he was different, heaven was expecting them to receive Jesus and love him as they would all of the human population, as God’s beloved. But it was not to be.

Today’s truth is that we Christians are “grafted” into the heavenly body by the very body and blood of Jesus as he asked us to do as often as we remember him. This is what St Paul said in his First Letter to the Corinthians, “For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is foryou. Do this in remembrance of me.”  In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”  (1^st Cor.11:23 – 25) This “grafting” us into Christ’s body and blood has made us aliens of the earth and citizens of heaven as he is.  We are sisters and brothers of Jesus and daughters and sons of God.  And as children of God we are naturally created to love everybody!  It’s who we are.  Nothing more, nothing less.  So there is no “if” we are God’s children, we are.  God is our Parent.  Therefore we must love Jesus and everybody else.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Readings for James Solomon Russell: Priest: (December 20, 1857- March 28, 1935)

1 Kings 5:1–12Psalm 127John 14:8–14

John

“Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.”   (John 14:12)

My Pondering

This verse has always bothered me.  How can people who come after Jesus, who is God Incarnate, do greater works than he?  I think I missed the point of the close  of  the statement, “because  I am going to the Father.”  When Jesus goes back to where he was in the beginning he then carries out the work of salvation and reconciliation on a much broader scale.  Today we remember The Rev. James Solomon Russell, an Episcopal Priest and educator of People of Color.

“Russell and his wife began teaching African Americans in a room at the tiny new church. This expanded and eventually became Saint Paul Normal and Industrial School. Due to his enthusiasm and aggressive fund-raising, it expanded its enrollment and curriculum. In 1893, Rev. Russell was named Archdeacon of the newly formed Diocese of Southern Virginia and charged with working among African Americans.” (the Episcopal Archives.)

The lesson here is that we can do so much more than a single Jesus could have done by simply stretching out to the hearts of others no matter who they are. James Russell’s  enthusiasm and aggressive fund-raising enabled him to accomplish much more than he or others ever dreamed for the benefit of emancipated slaves, of which, he  was one.

We of today (regardless of race or ethnicity) do not have the obstacles that Russell or Jesus had.  But we still have Jesus’ word that we are able to do greater works because Jesus is at the helm just waiting through our prayers to enable us to do great things. All we have to do is utter “Help Me Jesus.”  And watch what happens!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

This is part two of Wednesday 27 March 2019. The first part for this day is below.

AM Psalm 119:97-120; PM Psalm 81, 82 Jer. 8:18-9:6; Rom. 5:1-11; John 8:12-20

Further Pondering from today’s

Jeremiah

“Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored?” (Jeremiah 8:22)

My Pondering

Physical healing seems to be very important to God.  The same was true for Jesus as some of his first actions in his ministry in Galilee was to cure the sick.  What does this insight say to us about our Creator?

I believe it is important to God because physical health is foundational for mental health, which is foundational for spiritual health.  And as we know, “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24).  Physical health has always been important to me.  Even as I entered the priesthood  I continued to maintain my physical health as best I can.  For me, it is a discipline as dogmatic as morning prayers.  Every morning its push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups and more.  I give thanks to God for my health but I realize I have some responsibility in maintaining it. 

I also keep in proper perspective that my physical health is temporal and only with me for a short time and is for the ultimate purpose of my spiritual health. The physical health will diminish over time; the spiritual health, I pray, is eternal. Thank You Jesus.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday 27 March 2019: Year 1: 3 Lent

AM Psalm 119:97-120; PM Psalm 81, 82 Jer. 8:18-9:6; Rom. 5:1-11; John 8:12-20

Romans

“And not only that, but wealso boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” (Romans 5: 3 – 5)

My Pondering

Paul tells the Church in Rome (and us) that suffering produces endurance!  If we can manage to just get by the first few minutes of agony we will perhaps outlast the initial shock and pain of whatever horror that befell us.  Getting past the initial agony one or two times teaches us that we are survivors and to hold on as much as we can, it teaches us endurance.

Endurance shows us that if we can get past the initial shock of the events that come at us, it builds up in us a history of overcoming challenges, and in doing so it builds character. It becomes a personality trait that informs our choice to persevere no matter what comes and to teach others to do the same.

Character, Paul says, produces hope – hope that as we hold out, as we persevere, things will get better, in this world or in the next. Hope will not let us down, either this side of our mortality or the other side in our immortality. We must maintain whatever hope and trust we have.

This last part of the verse from Romans holds a special place in my heart because in our Women’s Bible Study we use the Noon Day Prayers to begin our study.  In that service these words from Paul are read every Tuesday from the bottom of page 105 of the Book of Common Prayer which reminds us that “the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” (Romans 5: 5)  The weekly repetition of these words instills in us that God is at work in us. These words reinforce endurance, character and hope. This, for me, really gets down to holding on to what is good and hoping for the best in all situations, even in the bad ones.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Readings for Harriet Monsell (1811 – 25 March 1883)

Isaiah 66:1–4 Psalm 133  John 3:25–30

John

“John answered, No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.” (John 3:27)

My Pondering

In doing good, we can only receive, and therefore pass on, only that “what has been given from heaven,” according the Evangelist.  This message of passing on the good is so fitting as we remember Harriet Monsell today.

Harriet Monsell (1811 – 25 March 1883) founded the Community of St John Baptist, an order of Augustinian nuns in the Church of England dedicated to social service, which by her death had expended to numerous houses, including in India and the Americas. (Harriet Monsell: A Memoir by The Rev. T.T. Carter)

Harriet O’Brien married giving her the name Monsell but her sick husband died.  She then took vows for her own religious order, the Community of St John the Baptist.  “During the new order’s first five years, it expanded from assisting about thirty marginalized women to dedicating a building to serve about eighty. As the Community of St John Baptist, guided by Mother Harriet’s energy, extensive correspondence and humor, the nuns extended their original mission to running about forty institutions, including mission houses in various parishes, as well as orphanages, schools and hospitals.” (Harriet Monsell: A Memoir by The Rev. T.T. Carter)

Monsell received from heaven the good gifts of energy, extensive correspondence and humor.  She worked tirelessly to engage community with light hearted intellect and love.  But she also had the gifts of listening, patience and compassion and used those godly gifts for the benefit of former prostitutes and single mothers. As the Evangelist says “no one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.” Monsell’s gifts were so under the radar.  She was not a great singer, or gifted athlete.  She was blessed with the ability to listen, to be patient and to have compassion.  We might be tempted to call theses “soft” gifts but they made a hard and positive difference in the lives of the women she, and her sisters in community, helped which includes the children of the mothers they helped.

What soft gifts might you have?  Check yourself out.  You might have the same gifts that Harriet had.  She is gone from us now but God moves the gifts around, perhaps on you!  The need is still here.  People need to be listened to, they need patience as they undergo the process of improvement, and they very much need to be helped by people with compassion.  What do you think, did God take some of the gifts given to Harriet Monsell, who used them faithfully, and place them on you?  How will you respond?

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for the Annunciation: March 25

Isaiah 7:10-14; Psalm 40:1-11or 40:5-10 or Canticle 3 or 15 Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:26-38

Luke

“In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.  But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.” (Luke 1:26 – 29)

My Pondering

This is one of my favorite verses as this is one of the two places in Luke’s Gospel where Mary “Ponders” about what is going on.  But there is something else going on that I am noticing.  Mary conceives of Jesus in Nazareth of Galilee.  This Nazareth is a mystical place that has gone under the biblical radar for a long time.

Nazareth is not thought of in a positive light according to Nathanael in John’s Gospel.  “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.” (John 1: 46)  Nathanael’s remark makes Nazareth seem like the Sodom and Gomorrah of his day.  There are some amazing features about this region of earth.

For one thing Lake Galilee is the lowest level fresh water lake on the planet.  What does this mean to God as God looks down on this planet that God has given us as our fragile home? Galilee is so different from Judea in that Galilee has more frequent rains with crops and live stock. Judah is barren and arid. Jesus was conceived in Nazareth of Galilee and eventually was taken back there to be raised.

The picture I took while there last year (February 2018) is the one I use at the top of this blog and is of the Galilean coastline from a boat in Lake Galilee itself. I was amazed by this view of Jesus’ three year ministry. Jesus walked and preached and healed and taught within this view a little more than 2000 years ago.  We need to look at the Holy Land with a new perspective, one of hope and surprise; God sure does. This is where Mary agreed to partner with God to change the world. She said “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” (Luke 2:38)

We can learn so much by just watching what God does, and where God chooses to do a work, and who God chooses to assist in the work, like Mary, and like you.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Sunday 24 March 2019 (3 Lent: Year C)

Exodus 3:1-15  Psalm 63:1-8 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Luke 13:1-9

Luke

“No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.” (Luke 13: 3 &5 NRSV)

My Pondering

Verses 3 and 5 say the same thing about people being killed.  One was caused by human evil and one caused by unexplained evil.  In any case, bad stuff happened that caused human loss of life.

A word or two about what it means to perish before we look into what repentance is all about.  To perish here means to cease to exist. It is not the being brought into the heavenly realm promised to those who believe and repent of sin.  To perish is the opposite of eternal life. Repentance avoids perishing.

Denial, retaliation, and minimization are sometimes the reasons we feel we don’t have to repent.

Denial of wrongs we have done or left undone does not alleviate or lessen the wrong done or undone. It still happened.  It is what God is aware of and we have to own it.  Then the process of repentance can begin.

Retaliation or eye for an eye is no excuse for evil done to another.  There is no excuse to perpetrate evil of any kind.  We are Christians, retaliation is not what we are called to do.

Minimization is the act of reducing the damage done in our own minds so that we don’t feel so bad about the harm done to others.  Minimization is the act of lying to ourselves. We must empathize with the one we have impacted and get their feelings in our head.  Only when we become the victims we created will we fully understand the damage caused.

The point of this Luke reading is repentance and to repent as early as possible.  Whether it’s human fault or natures fault, it makes no difference.  This very evening is not promised to us. Are their acts, words, and/or thoughts that we wish we had not committed?  The time to set it right is now.

The tree in the story is a metaphor for us as we are given another chance for repentance with the help of a pastor/prophet/Son of God. This holy helper (Jesus) will assist us in turning back to God.  Thanks be to God. Thank You Jesus.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Daily Office Readings for Saturday 23 March 2019 Year One of 2 Lent

AM Psalm 75, 76; PM Psalm 23, 27Jer. 5:20-31; Rom. 3:19-31; John 7:1-13

Psalm 27

“Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!”
    Your face, Lord, do I seek. (Psalm 27:8 NRSV)

“You speak in my heart and say, “Seek my face.” *
Your face, Lord, will I seek. (Psalm 27:11 NIV)

My Pondering

Okay, this is a verse to ponder. Depending on the English translation, one understanding of seeking God’s face could come up in verse 8 or 11. While the NIV has a second person singular talk with God (God talking to us directly), the NRSV has the heart (or our soul) speaking to us, its host, with God being in third person singular. And I prefer the word soul rather than heart.  The heart is a blood pumping muscle while the soul is a gift from God that can’t be found by science.  This soul is constantly in conversion with God.  And then our soul talks to us about God.

The Psalmist says that the soul speaks to us about God, “Seek God’s face.”  Our souls are our connection to God.  God planted it in us. If you establish and maintain some quiet time daily and are quiet and listen intently, you can hear your soul talk to God.  It’s like hearing someone on the phone.  You can hear the one on your side of the phone but you can only guess the gist of the conversation as you try to piece it together based on what your soul is saying.  The one thing you can be sure of is that when your soul is talking to God, it is about you!

My real sadness is for people who say they don’t believe in God. This means that they also don’t believe that they even have a soul because our souls are gifts from God. To refuse to believe is the waste of a soul. I feel so sad for them.

There is another understanding for our souls and that is the spirit which is the same gift from God by another name being undetectable by doctors or scientist. St Paul speaks of this in Romans as he informs us, ^“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.  And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” (Romans 8:26 – 27 NRSV)

So you see, there is something about us that is connected to God.  And get this, it is in us for our own benefit.  God did this for us.  It is the continuation of Emanuel (God with us).  So listen to the Psalmist as he teaches, “Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!”  And you should respond,
    “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”   Amen.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to God’s people and “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.