onewhoponders

Readings for Thursday of Easter Week: 25 April 2019: Easter

Acts 3:11-26 Luke 24:36b-48Psalm 8 or Psalm 114 or Psalm 118:19-24

Acts

“And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Messiah appointed for you, that is, Jesus, who must remain in heaven until the time of universal restoration that God announced long ago through his holy prophets.”  (Acts 3:17-21)

My Pondering

I don’t think we expect a leader to be weak much less be one who suffers. Then, like today, we want someone to be in charge who is strong and flawless.  However, I have noticed and pondered about the fact that conquering nations often copy habits or traits of those they dispossessed. This seems to me counterintuitive.   For example; European colonist displaced Native Americans and picked up smoking as a pastime.  The Romans dispossessed the Hebrew people from their native land only for Rome to become the seat of Judeo-Christian Church of the world. Often a dominant group will adapt the habits or customs of a minority group, even one they defeated.  Peter recalls from the prophets that the Messiah would suffer.  This is not what they expected.  It is not what we expect of leaders today.

Yet this is the path to universal restoration.  Peter says that universal restoration is when Jesus will return to us.  I ponder that this means all people; all families, are reconciled back to God.  Currently, there are many families that are not.  So we’ve got work to do.  I’m at a loss as to how to proceed.  Perhaps I’m still in ignorance as Peter says about his friends and their leaders.  I guess the best that I can do is to keep on pondering, praying, and preparing to be a suffering leader. Ouch!

It is said that it is lonely at the top.  Does that also mean suffering at the top? Jesus, feeling alone, often went to a place by himself to pray.  Abraham was also a suffering leader and often afraid of what following God was going to cost him, even his son.  Many of the prophets also suffered because they followed God.  But Peter reminds us that “You [we] are the descendants of the prophets and of the covenant that God gave to your ancestors, saying to Abraham, “And in your descendants all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Acts 3:25)

All the families of the earth sounds like universal restoration to me.  This means everybody acknowledging God and God’s love working in us for all people.  I am pondering only a leader willing to suffer on behalf of the people can do this kind of work.  It’s hard to hear this message but necessary for our salvation. So, hear it we must, and hopefully our future leaders will be people who are willing to suffer, and hopefully, we will appreciate them.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Wednesday of Easter Week; 24 April 2019 Easter

Acts 3:1-10  Luke 24:13-35 Psalm 105:1-8 or Psalm 118:19-24

Luke

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.” (Luke 24:30-31)

My Pondering

It seems the Resurrected Jesus did a lot of appearing and disappearing as he so chose.  This lesson on the road to Emmaus is just such an encounter.  Jesus retells scripture to them from Moses to their present which would include the kings and prophets, how God’s love and presence was always with humanity and how God came to them as Jesus.  God took humanity, blessed humanity, sent humanity in their various directions starting with twelve tribes.  This is the way God loves us.  God loves us, takes us, blesses us, divides us in good ways and sends us off to do good works. Anything less is not Godly.

It is when Jesus joined the two of them at their table and conducted the Holy Communion that they realized who he was.  At that point, he was no longer seen – magically, as he chose.

This four-fold consecration of the elements has been handed down to us from Jesus himself.  It is God’s format.  God takes creation and blesses it – says it is good.   Then God divides the spaces of where various created creatures are to live, some in the waters, some in the trees some on the open plain, some in the mountains, and so on, and gives to each their own.  However, humanity has the option of living in any climb and place where we can take love.  Humanity has the intellect to manipulate conditions to suit the necessary living conditions required.  So we, humanity, are taken, blessed, divided and sent to all parts of the earth to remember and proclaim the Creating Word. 

Church is the same way.  We gather, we are taken, we are blessed, and at the dismissal, we are sent out into the world, the divided world, to do church service, that is, model the love of God in all its divided places. 

 Jesus, like the angels throughout the Bible, does not arrive, but rather, appears.  This means the angels, and perhaps Jesus, are already with us, but prevents us from seeing them.  Jesus did not let them know who he was until he was ready.  As shown in this chapter of Luke, “While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them,  but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.” (Luke 24:15-16)

We have very limited perceptibility.  We see what the Holy One wants us to see, when the Holy One wants us to see it.  We, like the two on the road to Emmaus, are to see the sacred in the breaking of the bread.  It is then that our hearts also will burn with desire.  We repeat this “taking of the bread, blessings it, breaking it and giving it,” every Sunday in our Church.  It is what Jesus did and what Jesus said for us to do. With this act we see Jesus with us.  Thank You Jesus.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Tuesday in Easter Week 23 April 2019 Easter

Acts 2:36-41 John 20:11-18 Psalm 33:18-22 or Psalm 118:19-24

Acts

“Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”   Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers,^[i] what should we do?”  Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:36 – 38)

My Pondering

It really hurts to learn you have been a part of something that was bad.  When I visited Christ Episcopal Church, downtown Philadelphia I got into a conversation with a historian there about the heroes of the Civil War.  The question he put forth to me was how does the ancestors of Confederate soldiers honor the bravery and courage of their great, great grandparents and at the same time disapprove of what they were fighting for?  In the same vein I have a friend who is a priest and who has an old sword of his father tied to a form of White supremacy that he is ashamed of.  I told him that that was a different time. He told me “that’s not a good enough answer.”

I myself have bought products made with slave labor.  I am sorry for participating in such shameful acts.  I have pretended not to see abuses of people different than myself. I have seen what I believed to have been evidence of domestic violence and not reported it. I continue to crucify Jesus.  I too am cut to the heart.  What should if do Peter, I have already been baptized?

I believe the waters of baptism never stop flowing.  While I believe in one baptism, I did engage in a ceremonial baptism in the Jordan River while on pilgrimage in Israel. Jesus was baptized in the River Jordan. A river is a “moving” body of water.  The Jordan River takes the sins of the baptized down river to the Dead Sea!  That’s something to ponder.

 The waters of baptism continue to move over us long after someone has initially started pouring the water over us, or submerging us in it.  This continual “Fount of Every Blessing”, this running water, like a regular shower, continues to rinse away our sins.  We, however, must keep regular visits to Holy Communion to keep that holy water moving.  This is why a little water is mingled into the wine at Communion.  It is a reminder that as Baptized Christians we vowed that we will continue in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers. (BCP 304)

At Communion Jesus’ words ring out, “This is my blood of the New Covenant that is shed for you, and others, for the forgiveness of sins…”  Thank You Jesus!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Monday in Easter Week 22 April 2019 EasterActs 2:14,22b-32Matthew 28:9-15Psalm 16:8-11 or Psalm 118:19-24

Matthew

“Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  (Matthew 28:10)

My Pondering

I have been to the Holy Land.  There is a difference between Galilee and Judea.  There is a difference in the land and climate.  In the North, in Galilee, there is rain and there are fields with crops and live stock. This is where Lake Galilee is (also called Sea of Galilee).  This is where the Jordan River is (where Jesus was baptized).  It is a blessed place with or without people.

Judea to the south is arid.  Judea is desert.  It is where the Dead Sea is.  Jerusalem is in Judea. Jerusalem is 2,474 feet above sea level and in its natural state it is a very dry heap of sand. How it got to be a Holy City is probably affixed to David, Solomon and the subsequent Temples built there and the longing of the Hebrew people to be there.

But as I listen to Jesus’ story and his words it occurs to me that it is not so much Jerusalem of Judea that he focuses on for good works and teaching but Galilee and its towns and villages.  Of Jerusalem Jesus says, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Matthew 23:37) So something about Judea and Jerusalem in the south is not so blessed to me as I ponder these things, with or without people.

I prayed for God to give me an unbiased mind as I was preparing to travel to the Holy Land.  I think God did. Putting aside all I had read and heard about Jerusalem and Judea I witnessed firsthand the nature of Israel, upper and lower Israel. I took the picture of the Galilean countryside from a boat in the middle of Lake Galilee that is posted at the top of all my blogs.

It was in the region of Galilee that Jesus turned water into wine (Cana), He walked on water (sea of Galilee), preached the sermon on the mount (Mount Tabor), raised the widow’s son (Nain), healed Peter’s mother-in –law (Capernaum), fed the 5000, and much, much more.  So, it is not surprising to me that the Resurrected Jesus tells the women to tell his followers to meet him in Galilee.  I just wish I knew where in Galilee.

I think sometimes it is a good thing to meditate and ponder on what Scripture says, and what it does not say.  We, as Christians, focus on Jesus, what he does and what he says for us to do.  Jesus was conceived and later raised in Nazareth of Galilee.  And while he was born in Bethlehem and taken to Nazareth by way of Egypt as a baby and a child, of his own accord he went to Capernaum of Galilee and walked along the shore inviting his followers to follow him.  I highly recommend Christian pilgrims desiring a trip to the Holy Land to pay much more attention to Galilee as they plan. Remember, the Resurrected Jesus, the “Easter” Jesus actually invites us to go to Galilee. “Then Jesus said to them [us], “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers [and sisters] to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  (Matthew 28:10)

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Easter Sunday 21 April 2019

Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 65:17-25 1 Corinthians 15:19-26 or Acts 10:34-43 John 20:1-18 or Luke 24:1-12 Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24

John

“Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”  Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.” (John 20:17-18)

My Pondering

Mary runs twice.  First she sees that the body of Jesus is missing and runs and tells Simon Peter (and we think John) that the body of Jesus is missing.  After they have their “verification run”, Mary sees and talks with Jesus and then is sent by Jesus to announce the Resurrection!

Mary owes everything she knows about herself to Jesus.  She was possessed by many demons from which Jesus released her.  Jesus was her life-line.  So when Jesus called her by her name, “Mary” it was like the impossible happening! She got her life back.

Mary is sent by Jesus to give the Resurrection sermon; I have seen the Lord! She gives the information that Jesus has risen from the dead!

Jesus coming back from the dead might be shocking.  But I think what is more divine about Jesus is that he rose from the dead, and is able to let us know he rose from the dead.  I wonder how many rose from the dead but are not able to share with us the reward of faithful living.

God has made covenant with humanity for the whole existence of humanity.  And we always find a way to break it. We broke it with Noah. We broke it with Abraham. We broke it with Moses. Now God comes to us as one of us to show us how to keep covenant. This time in order to break covenant we have to kill God Incarnate, and we do.  But God says “NO.”  This time God un-breaks the broken.  God in Christ Jesus, as a human and as God, sustains covenant with God by defeating death, thus maintaining covenant with God.

Jesus tells Mary to go and tell “us” that he has gone back to his Father and our Father, to his God and our God. This is so reminiscent of Ruth 1:16-17 where Ruth refuses to leave Naomi but says, “   Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die— there will I be buried.”

I can see Mary running with more excitement than she can bear with the Good News of the Resurrection! But will Simon Peter and John and the others and us, will we listen to Mary Magdalene’s sermon and rejoice? Or do we too need to run some kind of verification race? We need to hear her words and believe her and get our lives back also. Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Easter Vigil 20 April 2019

Romans 6:3-11 Psalm 114 Luke 24:1-12

Luke

“But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened.” (Luke 24:12)

My Pondering

“What?” “ No, it can’t be!” Must have been what Peter thought when Mary Magdalene and the other women brought the disciples the news that Jesus was no longer in the tomb.

So Peter runs to the tomb to see for himself. I guess in all honesty, I might have done the same thing.  But as a Monday morning quarterback and a big fan of Mary Magdalene, I ask why couldn’t the men just believe her?  But since it does sound too good to be true, I probably would have ran to see for myself also.  In John’s Gospel Peter runs with another disciple who outruns Peter but hesitates at the door and Peter rushes right inside the tomb.

Peter has had some life changing experiences with Jesus.  Jesus has become part of who Peter is.  Jesus has become a part of who all Christians are.  Peter however, got to live with Jesus and witness firsthand the power of God working out salvation in a person. While it was difficult to have Jesus to die, it must be amazing to see his burial place be empty.  This is the turning point for Simon Peter. For him, and for us, it means hope!

From this point forward, Peter is a new person.  From the Resurrection forward, for all of us who are Christians, we are new persons in Christ Jesus.  We walk, or run, with Peter and we too are amazed. The tomb of our sins is empty and our future is full.  We have a guaranteed next life that has no end. Thank You Jesus!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Readings for Good Friday 19 April 2019Holy Week

Isaiah 52:13-53:12Psalm 22Hebrews 10:16-25orHebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9John 18:1-19:42

John

“Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus.” (John 18:10)

My Pondering

So here we have Peter with a sword, and he uses it.  Peter shows courage for the protection and love of Jesus, while at the same time not fully understanding what Jesus is all about. And here’s the thing, after he has done this he follows the mob of Temple officials as they arrest Jesus and carry him away.  Peter is in over his head.

We know that later he is going to deny knowing Jesus but he’s there at this moment anyway.  Maybe he has a plan or maybe he’s looking for a weakness in the sentry guarding Jesus and another opportunity to use his sword; a sword that he was not told to throw away but rather to put back in its sheath: interesting. Jesus does not seem to be opposed to the sword as he informs his disciples that the time will indeed come when they will in fact need a sword (Luke 22:36 -38)

This fisherman, Simon, who was re-named Peter, who is married (and we know this because he has a mother-in-law: Matt. 8:14-15) and has been touched at least twice by God with revelation about Jesus (the Confession: Matt. 16:17; and the Transfiguration Matt. 17) now follows Jesus and is ready to fight for his leader and for the new life his leader has proposed.  Peter is ready to defend the command to love with a sword!  He might well be considered the first Christian Knight.

While this sword play of Peter also shows up in Luke (22:50), only in the Gospel of John does it identify the sword handler as Peter and the person struck as Malchus (John 18:10). Having their names along with the names of Pontius Pilate and others helps to make this story part of our story. 

Today is Good Friday.  This is the day we remember that our Lord, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, God Incarnate, was taken into our human hands and murdered.  That this happened, we are saved.  God is good all the time, even when we are not.  This is God suffering for our sinfulness.  This is our getting angry about it.  But this is also our being very thankful for the grace and mercy of God to forgive us and allow us to be taken into death with the humanness of Jesus and brought into eternal life with Jesus as well.

This is why this is Good Friday; it is an ironic twist of fate that God’s judgment, of our judgment of Jesus, allows for our salvation. It is a sad day for what we did.  It is a necessary day for what we need. We, like Peter, must show courage even when we don’t fully understand. We too are in over our heads.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Eucharistic Readings for Maundy Thursday 18 April 2019: Holy Week

Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14 Psalm 116:1, 10-17 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-17, 31b-35

John

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)

My Pondering

John’s Gospel is written as if the readers already had a deep understanding of the Mathew, Mark and Luke and even Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians.  So the words of consecration need not be said again.  Instead this Gospel tells about the foot washing and the servant-hood of discipleship. It talks about loving one another as Jesus loves us.

This explanation of love differs from the synoptic Gospels in that it commands us to love one another as Jesus loved us, not just, love our neighbors as we love ourselves.  With the latter, it could be assumed that we in fact love ourselves.  But if we don’t love ourselves, are we off the hook to love others?  So John’s Jesus commands us to love others as he loves us, that is, all the way to the cross and a painful death- unconditional love, agape love.

Jesus says that if we love others the way he loves us everyone will know that we are his disciples, his students.   People will know that we are trying to follow in the Way, the Jesus movement.  This command is simple, love others, not proselytize others, recruit others, convert others or in any way persuade others into your own way of worship or belief. Just love them.

The foot washing is an important lesson in loving humility.  One must be committed to serve in order to wash another’s feet.  Also, like Simon Peter, we must let go and be served as God intended.  We need each other.  We will not always be able to care for ourselves.  The foot washing is a first step in seeing what it feels like to let a care-provider actually care for you.  It is not about being proud, it is about being humble. It is about letting yourself be loved.

The irony of John’s Gospel is that this is the preferred Gospel for Maundy Thursday.  This is the night Jesus intentionally established the Lord’s Supper.  After this he was arrested. The actual wording used by our Church can be found in one of the selected readings above (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). John’s Gospel however, contains no such wording.  But it does reflect Jesus coming down from that table, wrapping a towel around himself, washing the feet of his followers and then returning back to the table.  This is reminiscent of his coming down from heaven, wrapping himself in human form, teaching, healing, serving and returning to where he was from the beginning. It is powerful imagery. We truly need all the Gospel visions, all the Gospel words to hear what God is saying.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Readings for Wednesday of Holy Week 2019

Psalm 70; Isaiah 50:4-9a; Hebrews 12:1-3; John 13:21-32

Isaiah

“The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens— wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught.” (Isaiah 50:4)

My Pondering

These words resonate with me.  Morning by morning I too awake in conversation with the Creating Word.  This Holy Being coaches me through my life.  I am informed, and so I inform.  During the week I lead several Christian study groups.  There seems to be something good to teach every day of he week.  I know this is not something I have achieved.  It is gift. I am humbled by it.  I am also blessed by the people that God sends to me in these different studies.  As I lead, I also follow.  As I teach, I also learn. God gives me words to say that I personally never thought of.  Truly, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word.”

There is a real connection between the pastor and teacher as spelled out in Ephesians 4:11.  There is also a real connection between the listener and the counselor.  The pastor in me listens until my listening companion says what is necessary for him or her to hear and indeed, act on.  My job is to be another human being in the room.  I am to be safe, confidential and compassionate.  God helps me do this work.  I am not the only one.  In fact, I am part of a large part of God’s helpers, many of whom do not know that they have been called to do this much needed work. We need more listeners. We need more people waking up with God on their minds – listening to God coach us for being with those who need a pastor-teacher.

If you are reading this blog, please consider if you think God has gifted you with the capacity to sit with those in need of talking. It is very important that you agree to “let go and let God.”  God will do the work. I have learned that if you counsel, you should be counseled.  We all need that time to come to Jesus in the other.  No one is a lone wolf in this Spiritual companion work. As we companion, we are also companioned.   Inevitably it goes full circle. Or as my mother used to say, “what goes around, comes around.”  We are not made to live in isolation. We are hard-wired to be social creatures just as God, God’s self, is Trinitarian.

The weary are all around us.  They need help. They need guidance.  They need someone to talk to, perhaps you. Jesus says all too often, the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. The labor of love is listening.  The fruit of that labor is people turning around and reconnecting with God.

Be expecting God to wake you in the late or early hours  just as God did with young Samuel. (1 Sam. 3) And when it happens, just respond with, here am I Lord.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday 16 April 2019 Holy Week Year 1

AM Psalm 6, 12; PM Psalm 94Jer. 15:10-21; Phil. 3:15-21; John 12:20-26

Philippians

“Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you.”  (Philippians 3:15)

My Pondering

I am an Education for Ministry (EfM) mentor.  It is a Christian Formation program conducted by the School of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee.  It is a four year program conducted at satellite Episcopal Churches and homes throughout the U.S. and abroad.  Each Fall that we begin our academic year in my Fayetteville, N.C. group, we establish “Class Norms.” Along with confidentiality and other norms I always include the norm of deep listening which means accepting where others are in their theological journey.  I always tell them that we all are evolving. Where we are this minute theologically, may not be where we are in a few minutes, a few days or by the time we finish EfM. Further, we must respect where others are and give them the space to grow.

By the time participants in EfM get to Year 4 they have a real grasp of what it means to listen.  They also appreciate the many sessions of “Theological Reflection” that taught them how to process situations and how their Christian Tradition should inform their experiences.  So those of Year 4 are like those Paul talks about who are mature and of the same mind. 

I will also say that I have thought differently from other Christians about much of my Christian development and have taken some radical views about how I continue my journey.  Just one small example is switching from wearing the cross to wearing an emblem of chalice and bread to represent my Christian beliefs.  Our Christian tradition has, for the most part, used the cross to represent our faith.  However it has come to my attention that the cross was a Roman instrument of death.  And while we have Jesus saying “take up the cross and follow me,” such as this was written well after he was crucified.  What we do have Jesus saying in Matthew, Mark, and Luke/Acts is to partake of the bread and wine – body and blood – as often as you do it in remembrance of me. This is a clear directive from Jesus as a way to remember him.  I have other quirks but perhaps for another time.

The point I’m trying to make is that from time to time all of us think differently.  It’s ok.  Because we are free thinking Christians and no one way to follow Jesus should be forced on us.  Paul tells the Church in Philippi and us that “if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you.”

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying through and to the people of the Creating Word and then let us “Ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.”  John Thomas Frazier Sr.