16 Aug - From Everywhere, United In The Liturgy

John 3:22-36

Each time that we participate in the Eucharist, we become part of the ongoing life of God. We celebrate the sacrament of Holy Eucharist, not just on Sunday mornings in gatherings of Christian faith communities, but on many other occasions as well. Many years ago Dom Gregory Dix, an English monk, published a wonderful description of such occasions. He wrote:

from The Shape of the Liturgy, by Dom Gregory Dix, p. 744

For century after century, spreading slowly to every continent and country and among every race on earth, this action has been done, in every conceivable circumstance, for every conceivable human need from infancy and before it to extreme old age and after it, from the pinnacles of earthly greatness to the refuge of fugitives in the caves and dens of the earth. People have found no better thing than this to do for kings at their crowning and for criminals going going to the scaffold; for armies in triumph or for a bride and bridegroom in a little country church; for the proclamation of a dogma or for a good crop of wheat; for the wisdom of a Parliament of a mighty nation or for a sick old woman afraid to die; for a schoolboy sitting an examination or for Columbus setting out to discover America; for the famine of whole provinces or for the soul of a dead lover. In thankfulness because my father did not die of pneumonia. . . for the settlement of a strike, for a son of a barren woman, for Captain So-and-so, wounded and prisoner of war. . .One could fill many pages with the reasons that people have done this, and not tell a hundredth part of them. Best of all, week by week, month by month, on a hundred thousand successive Sundays, faithfully, unfailingly, across the parishes of all Christendom, the pastors have done this just to make the holy common people of God.

Peace,

Deacon Sue

9 Aug - The Bread Of Life

John 6: 35, 41 - 51

The Bread of Life

Most of us were told that if we worked really hard, it was going to bring “the good life.” Or if we had the right looks or the right kind of resume.

Or the right exercise program or the right body fat level.

Or the right investment portfolio or contacts in the right places.

Or the right church, the right theology, the right political persuasion.

We’ve all searched down a few of life’s paths - - for “the good life,” and perhaps come out just as lost as before.

And maybe just as hungry as before.

So what can the answer finally be? Today’s readings teach us simply that pursuing these “good things” as ends in themselves, is anything but the pathway to “the good life.” The authentic life – the life of depth and meaning – is rooted in our relationship with God, and how that life is lived-out with those God gives to us.

The bread of the world, while necessary, will only turn stale.

The Bread that Christ gives, in the Word, and in Christ’s body that is broken for us, lasts forever.

That is the living bread that nourishes us, and leads us: To be kind to one another; To be tenderhearted with those close to us; To forgive one another when we hurt each other; and finally, to help one another on our journeys together in Christ.

Jesus teaches that when we do these things, we will find that we have discovered “the good life,” the abundant life, in living that way.

And of course, we will find that this is not the soft life, or the easy life, but it is the life of Christ, lived in and through us!

This is the life that relieves the hunger - - beneath all hungers, and Jesus maintains that it’s the only life worth anything – to anybody!

It’s the “good life” rooted in Grace. For that reason, it is a life which we ultimately would not trade for all the tea in China! Amen.


Peace,

Fr. Bob +

2 Aug Weekly Thought

Last week, as I was greeting people at the door, one person said to me, “Why do we have to listen to Old Testament readings like that?”

Well, because they are good stories to learn from. In this case, we learn about King David. And because I believe they are stories of hope.

When we think of King David, we tend to think of him as a great king, the father of Solomon (another great king) or as the one who wrote all the Psalms. But let’s look at this David. When the story begins, he is lustful. He’s an adulterer. He’s a murderer, or an accessory to murder.

This is where Nathan comes in. He’s a prophet, sent by God and prophets weren’t always welcome or treated well. So Nathan begins by telling David a story. David, who as king, is used to hearing stories and making judgments. And Nathan doesn’t tell him that the story isn’t real. So, when David hears how this wealth man exploits the poor man, his reaction is that it is unconscionable. Then Nathan says: “it’s you!” Well, that must have caught David up short. But to his credit, he didn’t kill Nathan or make excuses or say things like “Well, I didn’t mean…”. He acknowledged his sin: “I have sinned.”

We are quick to judge the behavior of others, but not so good at recognizing our own bad behavior. Who are the Nathans in your life? Who are the ones who are brave enough to hold up the mirror for you? And how do you treat them? Some friends take great risk, like potentially losing a friendship, when they call you on your stuff.

What Nathan does is allow David to acknowledge his sin, and by doing so, David is then open to God’s grace and forgiveness. That doesn’t mean there weren’t repercussions later in the story; he doesn’t get off scott free. But he is able to receive God’s forgiveness.

We should give thanks for the Nathan’s in our lives. When we recognize our sins, we should acknowledge them, and by doing so, we open ourselves up to the grace, the love and the forgiveness of Jesus Christ.


Peace,

The Rev. M.E. Eccles, LPC