Back on the feast of Epiphany we remembered the visit of the magi to the Holy Family, and the gifts they bring: Gold for the king, Frankincense for the priest, Myrrh for the sacrifice. There is, I submit, one more gift - for us to offer: Praise for the Living One.
Right in the middle of Lent we encounter a part of the Nativity story, nine months before Christmas Day. Raymond Brown, the Roman Catholic biblical scholar, taught that the gospels actually were written beginning with the passion narrative - proceeding through Holy Week, the Passion, the Resurrection, the Ascension, and then on around to the Birth narratives.
The birth narratives begin with the visit of the angel to Zechariah, announcing the coming birth of John. Then the focus shifts to a younger woman, cousin of Elizabeth. It is Mary. The angel comes to Mary – and hails her as full of grace: she is to bear a son, who is to be the Messiah.
Mary accepts the burden of birth and the destiny of motherhood to the Messiah, Conception to Assumption, somehow knowing that she must not count her child as hers to keep, but must let go of him, dedicate him to the Lord, as Samuel's mother Hannah dedicated him, knowing he will go from her.
Mary, mother of Jesus, takes this task on herself, knowingly, as God's servant, because she knew that he, her child to be, was sent to set the people free: that at last God's promise to redeem Israel would bear fruit in the fullness of time, and that that fulfillment was coming very soon, and was beginning to happen, quickening even now in her.
The Word would indeed ripen in her own womb. She would bear forth upon the world he who would himself bear the pain of the world.
Like Hannah's son Samuel, Jesus the Son of Mary is one consecrated, set apart for service to the Lord, as a thanksgiving offering to the Lord. Samuel is the prophet who brought justice to Israel, and yet he points beyond himself - to Saul, first, then to David, to David's son Solomon, and ultimately to Jesus.
In the birth story of Samuel, Hannah his mother rejoices that God has remembered the forgotten, and will bring relief to the poor. “My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in my God,” she sings (1 Samuel 2:1-10).
In the birth story of Jesus, Mary his mother rejoices that God remembers the forgotten and brings relief to the poor. (Luke 1:46-55) And in our prayers, even daily, we join in her song, the Magnificat, the Song of Mary, Canticle 15 in the Book of Common Prayer: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior...”
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Anunciation 2012 (March 25)
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Sunday, March 25, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
BLast
in a new light
Loving Lord, let your light
shine in our lives,
let its brightness fill our
hearts and transfigure us;
that, seeing your glory,
we may come to you in awe and
wonder,
and gazing upon you may be
changed into your likeness,
moving from glory to glory;
through Jesus Christ our
Lord,
who with the Father and the
Holy Spirit
is in eternal glory for ever
and ever. Amen.
What happens when you see
someone in a new light?
Have they changed?
Have you?
When we visit a friend at her
home there she is in sweats and slippers, serving tea and talking about books.
We settle into comfy chairs and a sofa, and the afternoon passes.
When we see her, keys in
hand, ready to go out, she looks different, ready to face the world.
When I went to the bus stop
one day in college, to get a ride down to my house, I saw a guy from my class
standing there. Oh. He looked like a woolly-headed surfer to me. And so I
expected no more. Then he spoke. “I am reading the greatest book and I cannot
put it down!” Oh? What is it? “War and Peace. Oh, man! I just can’t put it
down….”
D’oh! My mind was changed. My
perception had been all wrong. And I’d lost out on two counts. I’d avoided
reading War and Peace myself (any book that long must be hard). And I’d
misjudged him – there was lot more to this guy than I had assumed there was.
My eyes were opened.
But rather than judgment what
I experienced was transformation.
He may not have looked
different but I saw him differently – and thanks to him, I saw other things
differently too.
Jesus – did he look any
different than he had before?
Certainly Peter and James and
John saw him differently.
What the disciples witnessed
was a theophany, a manifestation of the holy; and they saw it in their friend.
Jesus had befriended them by the lakeshore, these three; and now he brought
them on a hike up a high mountain. Heaven and earth were close together that
day. At the top they experienced what they could not foresee, and could not
talk about, until the resurrection made sense of what they saw.
What the disciples witnessed
was like what the three elders of Israel saw on Mount Sinai. They had gone up
with Moses to receive the life-giving Law. In a cloud for six days they waited.
And then God was revealed, to Moses, I suppose: for when he emerged from the
cloud his face was radiant. He shone like Jesus would shine.
What Elisha witnessed as he
journeyed with his spiritual father, Elijah, from place to sacred place on his
way to departure from this world was a theophany, God’s showing, of himself this
time in chariots of fire, and horses of fire, as God swept up Elijah into a
cloud of glory.
Jesus – did he look any
different than he had before?
Certainly Peter and James and
John saw him differently.
They saw him so differently
that Peter could see him as the culmination and fulfillment of the long line of
prophets to the people of Israel. There was Moses, the liberation leader, who
brought the people through the desert to the edge of the Promised Land. There
was Elijah, steadfast forerunner of the holy One, who met God on the mountain.
And there was Jesus, right up there with them. This meant the end of Ordinary
Time; it means this is the harvest-time of God, and Peter reacted
appropriately.
Let’s build three booths, for
the feast of booths, the grain festival at harvest time: let’s celebrate the
beginning of the time when God will gather all his people to himself.
Boom! “This is my Son, the
Beloved; listen to him!”
God spoke from the cloud –
That is what Peter saw and
heard.
What happened to Jesus? He
was revealed – as who he truly was, in his glory. A glimpse of eternity, a
glimpse of divinity: a glimpse of him as he always was, now shining forth.
How Peter sees Jesus is
transformed.
He saw him in a new light.
There was more to Jesus – and to Peter – than he’s expecting.
And so he responded, as best
he knew how.
Peter led with faith. This is
a faith seeking understanding, seeking meaning, seeking direction. Peter leads
with faith seeking to comprehend what he sees in Christ, through action, active
response to the revelation, through the act of following Jesus. He puts his
trust in Jesus and so he willingly submits to the transformation that
discipleship requires.
When we accept Jesus as Lord
and Savior, when we know he is light to the world…
How we see Jesus is
transformed.
How we see each other changes
in light of what we have seen, in him. But—
How do we see our selves and
others differently in the light of Christ?
What changes does
transfiguration call for from us? As a result of seeing Christ in a new light,
and seeing others in the light of Christ, how are we to live, differently from
before?
What the disciples did after
they saw Jesus transfigured, what Elisha did after he saw the chariots of fire,
what the elders of the people did after Moses returned from the mountain, was
to follow – to live differently, in light of what they had seen.
And to bring the news to the
people.
Everybody everywhere must
hear of this change of being.
What they saw made everything
new.
We have got to tell people
about it. And we have got to live differently because of it.
Jesus calls us into a new way
of being. He calls us to be transfigured, transformed.
He calls us to change our
lives.
How does he call us?
Jesus calls us to repent and
believe in the good news
Jesus invites us to take up
the cross
Jesus calls us to true
worship
Jesus is lifted up for our
salvation
Jesus invites us to follow
and serve
Jesus calls us to the pilgrim
way of Lent, the journey up to Jerusalem, to the Cross, and beyond, to Glory -
glory glimpsed on the mountain, one day to be revealed in all our lives.
So – let us give up gloom for
Lent. Let’s let the light shine in – to our lives, our church. And let’s let
the light shine out – from our lives, our church – to the world God loves.
May we bring the light of
Christ – the light of the knowledge of the glory of God revealed in Jesus
Christ – to our world. May it illumine us, and shine from our faces, not that
we may be glorified, but that we might see more clearly, love more dearly,
follow more nearly, the Lord that is revealed in the face of the people he
loves, the world he made.
May we bring the light of
Christ to the world; that his glory may be revealed.
Come, Lord of light,
transfigure us, increase our vision and reveal to us your glory.
May your church seek to
transform our darkest places with your light. May we seek out the lost and the
deprived, the poor and rejected, and bring them home to you and your love. We
pray for the mission and outreach of the whole church.
Transfigure, Lord, our towns
and cities, our homes, hospitals and nursing homes, and transform them into
outposts of your kingdom. Transfigure our public squares and hidden places,
that they may be radiant with the glory of the knowledge of the love of God.
Take our lives, as they are, and reveal through them the love you have shown
for the world.
Lord, touch us and
transfigure us…. in the name of God, source of all being, eternal Word, and
Holy Spirit.
THE PEACE
Let the Lord touch you and
transform you.
Let the Lord surround you
with peace.
May the peace of the Lord be
always with you.
THE BLESSING
May the Lord open your eyes
to his presence,
surround you with his love,
fill your days with his
glory,
and the blessing of God
Almighty,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with
you always. Amen.
Prayer, Peace, and Blessing
from David Adam, Traces of Glory
(SPCK, 1999).
in a new light
Loving Lord, let your light shine in our lives,
let its brightness fill our hearts and transfigure us;
that, seeing your glory,
we may come to you in awe and wonder,
and gazing upon you may be changed into your likeness,
moving from glory to glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit
is in eternal glory for ever and ever. Amen.
What happens when you see someone in a new light?
Have they changed?
Have you?
When we visit a friend at her home there she is in sweats and slippers, serving tea and talking about books. We settle into comfy chairs and a sofa, and the afternoon passes.
When we see her, keys in hand, ready to go out, she looks different, ready to face the world.
When I went to the bus stop one day in college, to get a ride down to my house, I saw a guy from my class standing there. Oh. He looked like a woolly-headed surfer to me. And so I expected no more. Then he spoke. “I am reading the greatest book and I cannot put it down!” Oh? What is it? “War and Peace. Oh, man! I just can’t put it down….”
D’oh! My mind was changed. My perception had been all wrong. And I’d lost out on two counts. I’d avoided reading War and Peace myself (any book that long must be hard). And I’d misjudged him – there was lot more to this guy than I had assumed there was.
My eyes were opened.
But rather than judgment what I experienced was transformation.
He may not have looked different but I saw him differently – and thanks to him, I saw other things differently too.
Jesus – did he look any different than he had before?
Certainly Peter and James and John saw him differently.
They saw him so differently that Peter could see him as the culmination and fulfillment of the long line of prophets to the people of Israel. There was Moses, the liberation leader, who brought the people through the desert to the edge of the Promised Land. There was Elijah, steadfast forerunner of the holy One, who met God on the mountain. And there was Jesus, right up there with them. This meant the end of Ordinary Time; it means this is the harvest-time of God, and Peter reacted appropriately.
Let’s build three booths, for the feast of booths, the grain festival at harvest time: let’s celebrate the beginning of the time when God will gather all his people to himself.
Boom! “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!”
God spoke from the cloud –
That is what Peter saw and heard.
What happened to Jesus? He was revealed – as who he truly was, in his glory. A glimpse of eternity, a glimpse of divinity: a glimpse of him as he always was, now shining forth.
How Peter sees Jesus is transformed.
He saw him in a new light. There was more to Jesus – and to Peter – than he’s expecting.
And so he responded, as best he knew how.
Peter led with faith. This is a faith seeking understanding, seeking meaning, seeking direction. Peter leads with faith seeking to comprehend what he sees in Christ, through action, active response to the revelation, through the act of following Jesus. He puts his trust in Jesus and so he willingly submits to the transformation that discipleship requires.
When we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, when we know he is light to the world…
How we see Jesus is transformed.
How we see each other changes in light of what we have seen, in him. But—
How do we see our selves and others differently in the light of Christ?
What changes does transfiguration call for from us? As a result of seeing Christ in a new light, and seeing others in the light of Christ, how are we to live, differently from before?
What the disciples witnessed was a theophany, a manifestation of the holy; and they saw it in their friend. Jesus had befriended them by the lakeshore, these three; and now he brought them on a hike up a high mountain. Heaven and earth were close together that day. At the top they experienced what they could not foresee, and could not talk about, until the resurrection made sense of what they saw.
What the disciples witnessed was like what the three elders of Israel saw on Mount Sinai. They had gone up with Moses to receive the life-giving Law. In a cloud for six days they waited. And then God was revealed, to Moses, I suppose: for when he emerged from the cloud his face was radiant. He shone like Jesus would shine.
What Elisha witnessed as he journeyed with his spiritual father, Elijah, from place to sacred place on his way to departure from this world was a theophany, God’s showing, of himself this time in chariots of fire, and horses of fire, as God swept up Elijah into a cloud of glory.
What the disciples did after they saw Jesus transfigured, what Elisha did after he saw the chariots of fire, what the elders of the people did after Moses returned from the mountain, was to follow – to live differently, in light of what they had seen.
And to bring the news to the people.
Everybody everywhere must hear of this change of being.
What they saw made everything new.
We have got to tell people about it. And we have got to live differently because of it.
May we bring the light of Christ to our world. May it illumine us, and shine from our faces, not that we may be glorified, but that we might see more clearly, love more dearly, follow more nearly, the Lord that is revealed in the face of the people he loves, the world he made.
May we bring the light of Christ to the world; that his glory may be revealed.
Come, Lord of light, transfigure us, increase our vision and reveal to us your glory.
May your church seek to transform our darkest places with your light. May we seek out the lost and the deprived, the poor and rejected, and bring them home to you and your love. We pray for the mission and outreach of the whole church.
Transfigure, Lord, our towns and cities, our homes, hospitals and nursing homes, and transform them into outposts of your kingdom. Transfigure our public squares and hidden places, that they may be radiant with the glory of the knowledge of the love of God. Take our lives, as they are, and reveal through them the love you have shown for the world.
Lord, touch us and transfigure us…. in the name of God, source of all being, eternal Word, and Holy Spirit.
*
But down the mountain, how are we to live? What's next?
How does he call us?
Jesus calls us to repent and believe in the good news
Jesus invites us to take up the cross
Jesus calls us to true worship
Jesus is lifted up for our salvation
Jesus invites us to follow and serve
Jesus calls us to the pilgrim way of Lent, the Cross-ward path of Christ, up to Jerusalem, to the Cross, and beyond, to Glory - glory glimpsed on the mountain, one day to be revealed in all our lives.
THE PEACE
Let the Lord touch you and transform you.
Let the Lord surround you with peace.
May the peace of the Lord be always with you.
THE BLESSING
May the Lord open your eyes to his presence,
surround you with his love,
fill your days with his glory,
and the blessing of God Almighty,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
Prayer, Peace, and Blessing from David Adam, Traces of Glory (SPCK, 1999).
let its brightness fill our hearts and transfigure us;
that, seeing your glory,
we may come to you in awe and wonder,
and gazing upon you may be changed into your likeness,
moving from glory to glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit
is in eternal glory for ever and ever. Amen.
What happens when you see someone in a new light?
Have they changed?
Have you?
When we visit a friend at her home there she is in sweats and slippers, serving tea and talking about books. We settle into comfy chairs and a sofa, and the afternoon passes.
When we see her, keys in hand, ready to go out, she looks different, ready to face the world.
When I went to the bus stop one day in college, to get a ride down to my house, I saw a guy from my class standing there. Oh. He looked like a woolly-headed surfer to me. And so I expected no more. Then he spoke. “I am reading the greatest book and I cannot put it down!” Oh? What is it? “War and Peace. Oh, man! I just can’t put it down….”
D’oh! My mind was changed. My perception had been all wrong. And I’d lost out on two counts. I’d avoided reading War and Peace myself (any book that long must be hard). And I’d misjudged him – there was lot more to this guy than I had assumed there was.
My eyes were opened.
But rather than judgment what I experienced was transformation.
He may not have looked different but I saw him differently – and thanks to him, I saw other things differently too.
Jesus – did he look any different than he had before?
Certainly Peter and James and John saw him differently.
They saw him so differently that Peter could see him as the culmination and fulfillment of the long line of prophets to the people of Israel. There was Moses, the liberation leader, who brought the people through the desert to the edge of the Promised Land. There was Elijah, steadfast forerunner of the holy One, who met God on the mountain. And there was Jesus, right up there with them. This meant the end of Ordinary Time; it means this is the harvest-time of God, and Peter reacted appropriately.
Let’s build three booths, for the feast of booths, the grain festival at harvest time: let’s celebrate the beginning of the time when God will gather all his people to himself.
Boom! “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!”
God spoke from the cloud –
That is what Peter saw and heard.
What happened to Jesus? He was revealed – as who he truly was, in his glory. A glimpse of eternity, a glimpse of divinity: a glimpse of him as he always was, now shining forth.
How Peter sees Jesus is transformed.
He saw him in a new light. There was more to Jesus – and to Peter – than he’s expecting.
And so he responded, as best he knew how.
Peter led with faith. This is a faith seeking understanding, seeking meaning, seeking direction. Peter leads with faith seeking to comprehend what he sees in Christ, through action, active response to the revelation, through the act of following Jesus. He puts his trust in Jesus and so he willingly submits to the transformation that discipleship requires.
When we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, when we know he is light to the world…
How we see Jesus is transformed.
How we see each other changes in light of what we have seen, in him. But—
How do we see our selves and others differently in the light of Christ?
What changes does transfiguration call for from us? As a result of seeing Christ in a new light, and seeing others in the light of Christ, how are we to live, differently from before?
What the disciples witnessed was a theophany, a manifestation of the holy; and they saw it in their friend. Jesus had befriended them by the lakeshore, these three; and now he brought them on a hike up a high mountain. Heaven and earth were close together that day. At the top they experienced what they could not foresee, and could not talk about, until the resurrection made sense of what they saw.
What the disciples witnessed was like what the three elders of Israel saw on Mount Sinai. They had gone up with Moses to receive the life-giving Law. In a cloud for six days they waited. And then God was revealed, to Moses, I suppose: for when he emerged from the cloud his face was radiant. He shone like Jesus would shine.
What Elisha witnessed as he journeyed with his spiritual father, Elijah, from place to sacred place on his way to departure from this world was a theophany, God’s showing, of himself this time in chariots of fire, and horses of fire, as God swept up Elijah into a cloud of glory.
What the disciples did after they saw Jesus transfigured, what Elisha did after he saw the chariots of fire, what the elders of the people did after Moses returned from the mountain, was to follow – to live differently, in light of what they had seen.
And to bring the news to the people.
Everybody everywhere must hear of this change of being.
What they saw made everything new.
We have got to tell people about it. And we have got to live differently because of it.
May we bring the light of Christ to our world. May it illumine us, and shine from our faces, not that we may be glorified, but that we might see more clearly, love more dearly, follow more nearly, the Lord that is revealed in the face of the people he loves, the world he made.
May we bring the light of Christ to the world; that his glory may be revealed.
Come, Lord of light, transfigure us, increase our vision and reveal to us your glory.
May your church seek to transform our darkest places with your light. May we seek out the lost and the deprived, the poor and rejected, and bring them home to you and your love. We pray for the mission and outreach of the whole church.
Transfigure, Lord, our towns and cities, our homes, hospitals and nursing homes, and transform them into outposts of your kingdom. Transfigure our public squares and hidden places, that they may be radiant with the glory of the knowledge of the love of God. Take our lives, as they are, and reveal through them the love you have shown for the world.
Lord, touch us and transfigure us…. in the name of God, source of all being, eternal Word, and Holy Spirit.
*
But down the mountain, how are we to live? What's next?
How does he call us?
Jesus calls us to repent and believe in the good news
Jesus invites us to take up the cross
Jesus calls us to true worship
Jesus is lifted up for our salvation
Jesus invites us to follow and serve
Jesus calls us to the pilgrim way of Lent, the Cross-ward path of Christ, up to Jerusalem, to the Cross, and beyond, to Glory - glory glimpsed on the mountain, one day to be revealed in all our lives.
THE PEACE
Let the Lord touch you and transform you.
Let the Lord surround you with peace.
May the peace of the Lord be always with you.
THE BLESSING
May the Lord open your eyes to his presence,
surround you with his love,
fill your days with his glory,
and the blessing of God Almighty,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
Prayer, Peace, and Blessing from David Adam, Traces of Glory (SPCK, 1999).
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Lent 2012
The Joy of the Cross-ward Path
An invitation to a journey
lies at the heart of Lent – a pilgrimage to places we could not choose to go, a
journey into Christ, in Christ, and with Christ; a path that leads up to
Jerusalem to the procession of the Palms and the Passion of Holy Week, and
onward from Cross to glory.
We are invited onto a path
of joy that looks at first like sorrow – and certainly contains it – but
contains within it a larger purpose and a future with hope beyond hope.
In faith we walk with Jesus this Lent. Each week we learn
more about his invitation:
1. Jesus calls us to repent
and believe in the good news – the news that, in Jesus’ words, “the time is
fulfilled; the reign of God is close at hand.”
2. Jesus invites us to
become his true disciples: to take up the cross and follow him.
3. Jesus calls us to true
worship.
4. Jesus is lifted up for
our salvation.
5. Jesus invites us to follow and serve – and this invitation he
extends to all who seek him.
This Lent we will look at these themes of deep celebration – of joy found in following and
in serving, always looking to Jesus as the source of salvation and the founder
of our faith.
How will you take up this invitation? Join us on Lenten
Sundays and Wednesdays, as we explore these themes,
and seek together what it means to live in the joy of the journey on the
cross-ward way of Christ.
(http://www.bread.org/help/church/worship/lent/2012-lenten-table-tents.pdf)
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Lectionary Themes, February - June 2012
Feb. 5 - Proclaiming the Message Mark 1:29-39
Feb. 12 - Spreading the Word Mark 1:40-45
Feb. 19 - The Transfiguration Mark 9:2-9
Feb. 22 - Ash Wednesday: Matthew 6:1-6,16-21
Feb. 26 - Jesus calls us to repent and believe in the good news Mark 1:9-15
Mar. 4 - Jesus invites us to take up the cross Mark 8:31-38
Mar. 11 - Jesus calls us to true worship John 2:13-22
Mar. 18 - Jesus is lifted up for our salvation John 3:14-21
Mar. 25 - Jesus invites us to follow and serve John 12:20-33
April 1 - Palm Sunday: Mark 11:1-11 & Mark 14:1-15:47
April 5 - Maundy Thursday: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
April 6 - Good Friday: John 18:1-19:42
April 8 - Easter Day: Mark 16:1-8
April 15 - Jesus and Thomas John 20:19-31
April 22 - Jesus Appears to His Disciples Luke 24:36b-48
April 29 - ‘I am the Good Shepherd’ John 10:11-18
May 6 -‘I am the True Vine’ John 15:1-8
May 13 - ‘Love one another as I have loved you.’ John 15:9-17
May 20 - The Ascension of Jesus Luke 24:44-53
May 27 - The Coming of the Holy Spirit John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
June 3 - Trinity Sunday: John 3:1-17
June 10 - The True Kindred of Jesus Mark 3:20-35
June 17 - The Mustard Seed Mark 4:26-34
June 24 - Feast of Saint Alban, First Martyr of Britain Matthew 10:34-42
JRL+
Feb. 12 - Spreading the Word Mark 1:40-45
Feb. 19 - The Transfiguration Mark 9:2-9
Feb. 22 - Ash Wednesday: Matthew 6:1-6,16-21
Feb. 26 - Jesus calls us to repent and believe in the good news Mark 1:9-15
Mar. 4 - Jesus invites us to take up the cross Mark 8:31-38
Mar. 11 - Jesus calls us to true worship John 2:13-22
Mar. 18 - Jesus is lifted up for our salvation John 3:14-21
Mar. 25 - Jesus invites us to follow and serve John 12:20-33
April 1 - Palm Sunday: Mark 11:1-11 & Mark 14:1-15:47
April 5 - Maundy Thursday: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
April 6 - Good Friday: John 18:1-19:42
April 8 - Easter Day: Mark 16:1-8
April 15 - Jesus and Thomas John 20:19-31
April 22 - Jesus Appears to His Disciples Luke 24:36b-48
April 29 - ‘I am the Good Shepherd’ John 10:11-18
May 6 -‘I am the True Vine’ John 15:1-8
May 13 - ‘Love one another as I have loved you.’ John 15:9-17
May 20 - The Ascension of Jesus Luke 24:44-53
May 27 - The Coming of the Holy Spirit John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
June 3 - Trinity Sunday: John 3:1-17
June 10 - The True Kindred of Jesus Mark 3:20-35
June 17 - The Mustard Seed Mark 4:26-34
June 24 - Feast of Saint Alban, First Martyr of Britain Matthew 10:34-42
JRL+
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Marked for Life
Marked on the forehead. That is what we see Ash Wednesday on fellow parishioners – and some people on the street. They are marked with a cross, made of ashes, drawn with a thumb, by a priest or minister. As they were marked they heard words like these:
Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
The imposition of ashes serves as a reminder of mortality – and a reminder of eternal life, for at death, to God’s faithful people, life is changed, not ended.
How can this be?
In Baptism you are sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ’s own for ever.
You are marked as Christ’s own forever. You are no longer your own; you are bought with a price. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
The life we live now we live no longer for our selves or of our selves, but we live in Christ, for Christ, as Christ’s own people, as the ones of his own fold whom he protects – and whom he guides – and whom he calls.
And he calls us not only into safety and refuge but also into a life that is fully alive – with threats, joys, sorrows, sheer boredom, hard days and soft hours, excitement and pain, and ultimate delight. For ultimately we delight in him and we are his own, brought into his company and welcomed home.
This home is ours – not at the end of time but now, ours from the moment of our baptism. At baptism we are welcomed into the home of faith, received into the household of God.
This household is God’s domain, the Kingdom of Christ. How to see it? How to live it? How to carry it out among ourselves? How to carry it out and make it real in our lives – and the lives of our neighbors?
Who is my neighbor? (Just checking.)
Hmm… maybe a demographic profile of my community will help. Maybe… a parable? (Substitute some stereotype unsavory and challenging for “Samaritan.”)
Or it may be that we encounter our neighbor when we find ourselves helping someone in need, or rejoice with someone in celebration, or simply share a meal.
And it may be that in encountering our neighbors we encounter something of ourselves. It may be something familiar and comfortable – or something familiar and uncomfortable!
And yet somehow Jesus welcomes us all – so that, at the last, and in the first instance, Jesus is able to say to us, with conviction, you are my own, singled out, marked for life.
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For the Gospel Grapevine (February 2012), newsletter of Saint Alban's Parish, Edmonds, Wash. http://stalbansedmonds.org
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Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
The imposition of ashes serves as a reminder of mortality – and a reminder of eternal life, for at death, to God’s faithful people, life is changed, not ended.
How can this be?
In Baptism you are sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ’s own for ever.
You are marked as Christ’s own forever. You are no longer your own; you are bought with a price. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
The life we live now we live no longer for our selves or of our selves, but we live in Christ, for Christ, as Christ’s own people, as the ones of his own fold whom he protects – and whom he guides – and whom he calls.
And he calls us not only into safety and refuge but also into a life that is fully alive – with threats, joys, sorrows, sheer boredom, hard days and soft hours, excitement and pain, and ultimate delight. For ultimately we delight in him and we are his own, brought into his company and welcomed home.
This home is ours – not at the end of time but now, ours from the moment of our baptism. At baptism we are welcomed into the home of faith, received into the household of God.
This household is God’s domain, the Kingdom of Christ. How to see it? How to live it? How to carry it out among ourselves? How to carry it out and make it real in our lives – and the lives of our neighbors?
Who is my neighbor? (Just checking.)
Hmm… maybe a demographic profile of my community will help. Maybe… a parable? (Substitute some stereotype unsavory and challenging for “Samaritan.”)
Or it may be that we encounter our neighbor when we find ourselves helping someone in need, or rejoice with someone in celebration, or simply share a meal.
And it may be that in encountering our neighbors we encounter something of ourselves. It may be something familiar and comfortable – or something familiar and uncomfortable!
And yet somehow Jesus welcomes us all – so that, at the last, and in the first instance, Jesus is able to say to us, with conviction, you are my own, singled out, marked for life.
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For the Gospel Grapevine (February 2012), newsletter of Saint Alban's Parish, Edmonds, Wash. http://stalbansedmonds.org
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Sunday, January 29, 2012
Presentation 2012
Jesus is
the Light of the World – and today, the feast of the Presentation, we celebrate
him – the light of the nations, and the glory of his people.
This is the last feast in the series that anticipates and celebrates the birth of the Christ Child, from the joyful expectations of Advent, the feast of the Nativity – Christmas itself, to the feast of the Holy Name eight days later on January 1st, the visit of the Magi who proclaim him King of the Jews and present him with gifts, to this feast 40 days after Christmas, when we remember that Mary and Joseph presented him, the first-born son, in the Temple.
This is the last feast in the series that anticipates and celebrates the birth of the Christ Child, from the joyful expectations of Advent, the feast of the Nativity – Christmas itself, to the feast of the Holy Name eight days later on January 1st, the visit of the Magi who proclaim him King of the Jews and present him with gifts, to this feast 40 days after Christmas, when we remember that Mary and Joseph presented him, the first-born son, in the Temple.
Jesus is
the Light of the World – and Simeon the righteous and Anna the prophetess are
there in the Temple to tell them so.
He is the
One all Israel has been waiting for; indeed, the whole world has been waiting
for him.
For he is
the hope of the world, the One who brings light that is life to all people.
As the
Gospel of John says in its very first chapter,
What has
come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.
Those
were dark days for Israel and any glimmer of hope would have been welcome. But
here was more than a glimmer – here was the source of light and life itself
come into the world.
The Word that was from the beginning became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory.
This is
the glory for his people. This is the light for the world. This One who came into
the world: Jesus, the Christ Child whom Simeon embraced:
At last!
At last! Now I can go in peace, knowing God is fulfilling the promise:
The
promise of Salvation – healing, wholeness, help and hope, and liberation from
the bondage of sin, the ultimate oppressor;
The
promise of Redemption – no longer will God’s people live under the unbearable
burden of sin;
The
promise of Atonement – for God has reconciled all to himself in this One, this
promised Child.
The child
of the promise –
whom you
have prepared for all the world to see, a light to enlighten the nations, and the glory – the shining forth in
praise of God – of the people of God.
(The Lord
is our light; whom then shall we fear?)
This
child, Simeon goes on to say, will see the rise of some and the fall of others
– and those who will fall will not be happy. Even in this moment of joy there
is a warning:
Jesus is
Redeemer and he is Judge.
He is
Judge – that is, the bringer of Justice – the one who establishes righteousness
in the realm of God – and
the road
to justice,
the road
to freedom,
the road
to righteousness and peace,
is not an
easy road –
it will
lead to the Cross,
and
beyond, beyond Death, to victory even over Death,
to the
final reconciliation of all people to God in his Son.
Through
Christ, through this Child, the world will be judged and made right in the
reckoning, and it will be led to freedom.
Anna
prophesies that the redemption of Jerusalem, the renewal of God’s city, will
come through this same infant.
40 days
old! and already a legend – no, more than that: a living promise, a word of
fulfillment.
The night
is past and day is dawning – the new day illuminated by the light of Christ.
He is the
light of the world, and he calls us, come and follow me!
Come and follow me! How then
shall we follow him?
How shall we bear forth that light that is life?
How shall we let the light of Christ shine forth –
How shall we let the light of Christ shine forth –
from us,
from this place, this gathering of God’s people?
How shall
we let the light shine – the light for the world?
We begin
to look at what Jesus said of his own ministry, his own work in the world, that
he calls us to follow him in doing.
As he says:
As he says:
The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to
the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom to the captives and recovery of
sight to those who are blind, to set free the oppressed and to proclaim the
year of the Lord’s jubilee.
And this
Scripture, from the book of the prophet Isaiah, began to be fulfilled even in
the reading.
The day
of the Lord is dawning. The light has come into the world. How shall we show
him shining –
-
in
our lives?
-
in
our hearts?
-
in
our ways, of doing, and being, in the world?
That is the challenge that we face today.
Let us be carriers of his light.
Let us be carriers of his light.
Let us
each take up that illumination that lasts forever, and is not quenched,
that the
light of Christ may shine forth from us,
for
all people.
Amen.
Feast of the Presentation
2012
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2012
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