onewhoponders

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 28 Year 1

AM Psalm 97, 99, [100]; PM Psalm 94, [95] 1 Macc. 3:25-41; Rev. 21:1-8; Matt. 17:14-21

Psalm 100 Jubilate Deo
1 Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands; *
serve the Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.

2 Know this: The Lord himself is God; *
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

3 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise; *
give thanks to him and call upon his Name.

4 For the Lord is good;
his mercy is everlasting; *
and his faithfulness endures from age to age.

Psalm 100 is very short, only four verses.  But it says everything. 

We should be joyful. But this only happens if we acknowledge God first and then our brothers and sisters after God.  If we start out considering other people before we see them through God’s eyes we sink into jealousy and other evils.  Go to everyone through God. You will be much happier.

God brought every human being into being.  It truly is more important to remember whose we are rather than who we are.

Being thankful is the least we can do or be.  All of us should have an attitude of gratitude as far as God is concerned.  Where there is a mix of sadness in our lives, there are sad people in the mix.

And lastly, here is where we (you and I), are created in God’s Image. We have both mercy and faith within us. Ironically, we also need mercy and faith from each other.  This too is the God part.  We have faith and we give mercy.  And we receive mercy and we grow and maintain our faith. I will tell you that I know people who aren’t sure of their faith but are some to the most merciful people on the planet. This mercy that they show others, especially those who are different, really demonstrates their unrealized faith. They just need to trust and hang in there.

Psalm 100 is short but contains all things necessary for salvation.

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 Monday of Proper28 Year 1

AM Psalm 89:1-18; PM Psalm 89:19-52 1 Macc. 3:1-24; Rev. 20:7-15; Matt. 17:1-13

“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books.” (Revelation 20:12)

This is a revelation from the Risen Christ to John an apostle of Christ.  This revelation as told by John perhaps gives us some insight about what it might be like to transition from this life to the next.  It is interesting that the dead were judged according to their works and not their beliefs.  But I guess it is some measure of accomplishment just to make it to that heavenly court to be judged at all. 

Two books were opened. One book may be the history of our lives, things done and things left undone. The letters “D” and “K” make a big difference here.  They were judged according to their works not their words.  They were judged according to their deeds done not what they “said” they did or wanted to do or even believed. We’re back to action speaking louder than words again.  As far as beliefs go, perhaps beliefs or non beliefs are exchanged for certain knowledge once we are standing in front of the Truth. 

What we believe about God is good if that is what it takes to make us live a godly life.  For some of us however, there is a universal moral principle that shapes our behavior towards others and a sense of decency that supervises our actions which still adds up to good deeds to be judged by.

 The other book is the Book of Life that our names are printed in and hopefully not blotted out.    “If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life; I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”(Revelation 3:5 – 6) Therefore, The Book of Life, may be a register that as our names are printed (and if not blotted out), in which case we’ve made it! Congratulations and Thank You 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+

Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 28 Year C Tract 2

Malachi 4:1-2a, Psalm 98,  2 Thessalonians 3:6-13,  Luke 21:5-19

“They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?”  (Luke 21:7)

This is an apocalyptic (or revelation) sharing about things to come that Jesus is telling them. It is also seen in Mark chapter 13 and Matthew chapter 24. The End Times (Eschaton) is coming.  The time is in Kairos, God’s time, not Chronos, our calendar time.

Sometimes it is not so much about what Jesus says, but what we ask in the first place, that really says what’s important to us. In the case of the End of all things (Eschotology), the question is, when, not if.  There is some sense that if it is not soon, weeks, months or even a few years, we have time to make things right, being the procrastinators that we are. But I think we miss the point.

The real point is not waiting to start, but to start now.  I can remember when I was asked to do something that required physical movement; I would jokingly say that I have already started moving in ways that couldn’t be observed by the human eye.  I would say that my feet have already started shifting in my shoes in preparation for standing.  I was trying to assure the person that I was starting to do the task even though I could not be seen moving; funny me.

The truth is that any step to improve our spiritual lives, no matter how small, is a step toward being prepared for the End Times of which, we have no idea of when.  All we have to do is believe it is coming and then act accordingly. When the End Time comes, acceptance is not so much a matter of what you “have done,” or “did not do,” but rather, where your heart is at that time. 

We must start now, right now, even with tiny, almost indiscernible steps, that inch us ever closer to being saved. And no matter how impossible it seems we must never give up; because while it is impossible for us, nothing is impossible for God. We just have to keep on keeping on.  Jesus says that, “It is by our endurance that we will gain our souls.”

We should never ask Jesus “when.”  We just need to start right now making ourselves better every day.  We do a little bit at a time.  It’s not setting a goal.  It’s just adding more and more righteousness as we go.  When the eschaton (the end of all things as we know it) comes, a new Promised Land comes as well. This is where (and when) not a hair of our heads will be lost. This takes perseverance. And it takes prayer.  So as the profit Malachi says, “But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings.” (Malachi 4:2) I can’t help it.  Let me play with these words. “But for you who revere my name the Son of Righteousness shall rise, with healing in His hands.”  Forgive me Malachi, it’s the Christian in me.  

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+

Readings for Margaret Queen of Scotland, 1093

AM Psalm 87, 90; PM Psalm 136 1 Macc. 2:1-28; Rev. 20:1-6; Matt. 16:21-28

“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)

This is a pretty popular verse from the Bible.  People often use it when they feel temptation is leading them down the wrong path.  I have found that Satan is often not so obvious.  Sometimes concern for self is Satan made manifest as was Peter’s concern about Jesus. But sometimes it is made manifest in not doing the good works that we are able to do because of the influence we have. Margaret, Queen of Scotland, carried such power and used it for the benefit of church and people.  Taken from Great Cloud of Witnesses for November 16, is the following:

“Shakespeare made familiar the names of Macbeth and Macduff, Duncan, and Malcolm; but it is not always remembered that Malcolm married an English princess, Margaret, about 1070. With considerable zeal, Margaret sought to change what she considered to be old-fashioned and careless practices among the Scottish clergy. She insisted that the observance of Lent, for example, was to begin on Ash Wednesday, rather than on the following Monday, and that the Mass should be celebrated according to the accepted Roman rite of the Church, and not in barbarous form and language. The Lord’s Day was to be a day when, she said, “we apply ourselves only to prayers.” She argued vigorously, though not always with success, against the exaggerated sense of unworthiness that made many of the pious Scots unwilling to receive Communion regularly.

Margaret’s energies were not limited to reformation of formal Church practices. She encouraged the founding of schools, hospitals, and orphanages, and used her influence with King Malcolm to help her improve the quality of life among the isolated Scottish clans. Together, Margaret and her husband rebuilt the monastery of Iona and founded Dunfermline Abbey, under the direction of Benedictine monks.”  (Great Cloud of Witnesses for November 16)

I find the link between the buildup of the Church and the establishment of schools, hospitals and orphanages fascinating.  Margaret is not the only saint that has done this kind of work.  There must be something about such people that enables them to put the Satan’s in their lives aside so that they are able to do good works. Today there are many hospitals named after denominations such as Methodist Hospital, Baptist Hospital and Presbyterian Hospital and the like.  As well, there are orphanages and schools that are also supported and maintained by churches. This is the kind of work we can do when we put Satan behind us.  Most of the schools that I have attended and completed were Christian affiliated schools.  Thank You 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+

Readings for Friday of Proper 27 Year 1

AM Psalm 88; PM Psalm 91, 92 1 Macc. 1:41-63; Rev. 19:11-16; Matt. 16:13-20

“He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’”  (Matthew 16:15)

So who do I say Jesus is?  Verbally, I say Jesus is my Savior.  I say he is the Son of God.  I say he is the Messiah. I say he is God Incarnate. I say he is my salvation. And, I say he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. But can I say he is my teacher?

In all but the last of the ways above that I proclaim who Jesus is, it is about the nature of Jesus that pretty much excludes me except for his relationship “around” me.  Being my teacher however, requires me to learn something new and godly and behave or act in a different way, a better way.  Saying Jesus is my teacher is not done with words, it is done through how my life is lived. As St Francis is reported to have said, go and preach the Gospel and when necessary, use words. This suggests making the Gospel manifest through works of kindness and compassion.  Well, following the instructions of Rabbi (Teacher) Jesus also means behaving in the ways he is teaching me.

I say who Jesus is every time I help someone in need, every time I feed the homeless, every time I stop and listen to someone tell me their sad predicament (even if I can’t help resolve it). All of these, and more, are what we are called to do in following the instructions of Rabbi Jesus. It’s not so much what we say, it’s what we do. Action truly does speak louder than words. We just don’t let action be our main voice. Or as Mark Twain said, “Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often.”  We need to speak with our actions more often. So, who do you say that Jesus is, and how do you say it, and how often?

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+

Readings for Bishop Samuel Seabury, First Bishop to the Americas.

“Psalm 133 Acts 20:28-32 Matthew 9:35-38”

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”  (Matthew 9:37 – 38)

Even though we had many parishes in the American British Colonies, we were never assigned a Bishop. And even our candidates for ordination to the priesthood had to take the ship across the Atlantic to be ordained a priest.  “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”  With the Revolutionary War, it would seem hopeless to get a Bishop, at least from England. It took courage or real faith to follow defeated war ships back across the Atlantic to ask for a priest to be consecrated a bishop.  But that is what Samuel Seabury did even though he was loyal to the British in the beginning; he honored the Independence of the new United States and would not submit to language that subjugated the Church under the British king.

“Samuel Seabury, the first Bishop of The Episcopal Church, was born in Groton, Connecticut, November 30, 1729. After ordination in England in 1753, he was assigned, as a missionary of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, to Christ Church, New Brunswick, New Jersey. In 1757, he became rector of Grace Church, Jamaica, Long Island, and in 1766, rector of St. Peter’s, Westchester County. During the American Revolution, he remained loyal to the British crown and served as a chaplain in the British army.”  (Great Cloud of Witnesses for November 14)

So while Seabury was loyal to the British he felt compelled to more deeply honor his new formed country and church.  We don’t always get what we want but when decisions are made by those we respect and trust we must come to ourselves and support those decisions. Scotland too had bishops who were consecrated from that same apostolic succession from the Church of Rome as did England but their language of consecration did not require homage to a king. So to Scotland he went.

“In Aberdeen, 14 November 1784, Samuel Seabury was consecrated to the Episcopate by the Bishop and the Bishop Coadjutor of Aberdeen and the Bishop of Ross and Caithness. He thus became part of the unbroken chain of bishops that links the Church today with the Church of the Apostles.”  (James Kiefer)

“Seabury kept his promise, made in a concordat with the Scottish bishops, to persuade the American Church to adopt the Scottish form for the celebration of the Holy Eucharist…… he participated in the first consecration of a bishop on American soil, that of John Claggett of Maryland. Seabury died on February 25, 1796, and is buried beneath St. James’ Church, New London.”  (Great Cloud of Witnesses for November 14)

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 27 Year 1

AM Psalm 119:97-120; PM Psalm 81, 82 Neh. 7:73b-8:3,5-18; Rev. 18:21-24; Matt. 15:29-39

“He read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law.” (Nehemiah 8:3)

From before we were Christians we have had a tradition of reading from, and listening to, the words of the Book. Perhaps not listing from early morning to midday but surely showing up and listening to the Word being read.

And hopefully, our ears too, are attentive to the Bible and the spiritual reflections shared in the words of the sermon on our own first day of the week, Sunday morning.  Maybe the words heard will cause us to go further when we get home or at least ponder what they might mean. 

As Episcopalians, we give special attention to the Gospel for the Eucharist.  It is important not only who reads it, (some level of clergy) but also where it is read, amidst the people.  Also, if the service has music, special music is played and a hymn sang for the introduction of the Gospel which is called a gradual or sequence hymn. Our Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, said that as the Gospel Book is carried out to the place where it will be read, the people in congregation turn, and “reorient” themselves to it as it passes the point where they are.

That is what we are all called to do, to reorient ourselves in following the Gospel of Christ. But it is only if we show up on Sunday mornings that the men and the women and those who can understand that the ears of all the people will be attentive to the Gospel.

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 27 Year 1

AM Psalm 78:1-39; PM Psalm 78:40-72 Neh. 9:26-38; Rev. 18:9-20; Matt. 15:21-28

“He answered, ‘It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ She said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’ Then Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed instantly.” (Matthew 15:26 – 28)

Faith, what we believe, can cause us to do strange things.  This Gentile woman with a sick daughter comes to Jesus who first refuses to helper her, and then, captivated by her faith, fulfills her request.

I can remember a similar experience in my beginning of church life in 1979.  A Marine friend took me to his church, St Anne’s Episcopal Church, Memphis, Tennessee. I then felt that I needed to be a part of that church.  I was the only person of color attending Sunday services.  Loose talk was accidently shared with me that maybe I wasn’t welcome there by everybody.  I talked with the priest and he said that if I was not welcomed, neither was he.  The priest felt my faith and included me as part of the communion.  I was baptized there on the Easter Vigil of 1980.  This dog was fed from the Master’s Table.  Thank You Jesus

We must follow our faith even when it is uncomfortable to do so.  Learning the Book of Common Prayer was much more challenging than trying to make the congregation like me. (smile)  Seriously, you must have faith, and follow it no matter what the obstacle or resistance there may be.  It matters not whether you are a modern day Gentile (an outsider), your so-called race, your disability, your so-called social status or anything.  Faith and perseverance will get you food from the Table.

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 27 Year 1

AM Psalm 80; PM Psalm 77, [79] Neh. 9:1-15(16-25); Rev. 18:1-8; Matt. 15:1-20

“For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.’”  (Matthew 15: 19 – 20)

I think we have two kinds of defilement here.  One is the toxic metaphorical heart.  The other is the possible biological toxicity caused by germs ingested. Let’s deal with food and unwashed hands first.

I am so guilty of this.  I often will randomly eat something, (candy or nuts especially) without washing my hands.  To my credit however, I will always mumble a short “Thank You Jesus” before putting it in my mouth.  I am not saying that not washing the hands is the right thing to do, probably not the best practice.  It’s just me, the not always washing my hands part. I’m still a work in progress.

About the toxic heart and for what comes out of it I like to use our computer program language, “GIGO.”  That is, garbage in, garbage out. When we put garbage in our hearts, certainly that is what will come out. It has nothing to do with the food eaten with unwashed hands.  It has everything to do with greed, envy, jealousy, lust, and hate.  We need to have a change of heart if that’s what’s festering in our hearts. So again it’s time for our Collect for purity: “Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.”  (BCP 355)

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+

Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 27 Year C

Job 19:23-27a Psalm 17:1-9 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 Luke 20:27-38

“But [Jesus said], “those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage,  and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.” (Luke 20:35 – 36)

I have been married most of my life.  I don’t know what it would it would be like to not be partnered with someone.  I was never “given” in marriage like children are is some places but married of my own free will and accord. So to hear Jesus say that that kind of relationship is over in the next life will be different in the “age to come.”  He said, “Those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage.”  Okay, so, I still want it.

In at least two movies I have heard some hero who was about to give his life for the sake of others, say to those he was rallying for a finally fight that he was leading, “Do you want to live forever?”  As I watch the movie I silently respond, “Yes.”  So when I hear Jesus say, “They can no longer die,” it appeals to me very much. Eternal life is what I am looking forward to.  Yes Jesus, I want to be like an angel. And I know that this outcome is not based on my effort nor worth, but rather on your judgment of my heart.  Therefore, I pray you Lord Jesus, “Cleanse the thoughts of my heart by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit that I may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your Holy Name through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.”

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+