Tag Archives: community

“Spending some personal time with Christ”

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O'CollinsExperiencing Jesus by Gerald O’Collins, SJ; Chapter 2 – “Jesus the Meaning”

As we continue our journey through Lent, the second chapter of O’Collins’ book challenges us to consider our personal relationship with Jesus. O’Collins begins the chapter with a brief story of Augustine, a fourth century Christian of great renown, and his ill-conceived plan to wait for his teacher, Faustus, in order to learn all the secrets of life. Augustine was convinced that Faustus’ arrival would make all things known and his life’s plan would unfold clearly from the knowledge obtained from his insightful teacher. Faustus did arrive and impart his knowledge to Augustine, but everything in Augustine’s life was not neatly explained as he had thought. Life is a journey of unfolding truths, gained through experiences revealed to those with open minds and open hearts. The people of Nazareth struggled with this truth, as they rejected Jesus’ ministry among them as simply the works of the familiar carpenter. Although their actions may surprise us, we too can be guilty of trying to domesticate Jesus or suffer from over-familiarity with the powerful news of the Gospel…happily nodding to ourselves, “yes, I know that story and its lesson quite well.”

Lent is a season that particularly calls us to prayer and action in specific and personal ways. The lenten road is a journey that must be made with great intimacy and with personal intentions toward Jesus and all that Jesus invites us to be. O’Collins captures the intimacy and intentionality of Lent with the following words: “What ultimately matters is the ‘felt’ knowledge of our own experience…It is the same with our experience of Jesus. We experience him for ourselves or not at all. We pray to him ourselves or not at all. No one else, not even the dearest or closest person in our life, can take our place here. We do our praying to and our experiencing of Jesus personally…When Jesus knocks on our door, it is we who must open it to him. Here we cannot say to another person: ‘Please get up and see who is at the door of my heart.'” (p. 26) O’Collins’ insight is true for Lent and it is true for the days beyond Lent, when we continue to experience our ongoing and unfolding relationship with Jesus and with others. Throughout this holy season of Lent, let us renew and refresh our desire to seek Jesus in the grace given to us each day. The personal experiences that shape our lives and draw us into deeper relationships are forged through our desire and our commitment to our common life together.

“Why the Boy Scouts are wrong…again”

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As a young boy I looked forward to Wednesday afternoons because after school my friends and I would gather as a pack, a pack of Cub Scouts engaged in crafts, games and many other activities. My involvement with Scouting continued and my personal growth and appreciation for everything that Scouting taught me continued until a myriad of other activities in high school pulled me away. Although I never achieved the highest levels of Scouting as a young man, my memories are as distinct as the lessons I learned: respect others, appreciate your community and try to give back, give thanks to God for all that has been given you, and of course many lessons of outdoor life and skills. I can also list many things that Scouting never taught me, because these things just never seemed to matter to those involved with learning and having fun together: the color of one’s skin determines who you are, you are limited by who you keep company with, and your personal sexuality is a cause of judgment against you. These last things were not only never addressed, but if one were truly attentive to the Scouting Oath and the Law of Scouting they were proved to be completely false…or so I thought until fairly recently. Continue reading →

“When is a patio not a patio?”

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A trick question? “When is a patio not a patio?” And, no, the answer has nothing to do with the fact that the “patio” is not a patio because it is a bunch of processed gravel…this is true, but I’m working on the gravel pit and by the end of the summer the patio will be there…I promise. So back to the question at hand…and the answer (as seen below) is that a patio is not a patio when it is a parking lot. That’s right, my home project of building a “patio” will serve as a parking lot for the near future, but that doesn’t deter me from knowing that I am building a patio (and in my plans, there is a wonderful fire pit and space for a table & chairs and some nice reclining chairs too). Why does any of this matter or have any bearing on one’s daily life?

Last Sunday’s Epistle reading was from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, with Paul encouraging the Christians in Corinth with the following: “As we work together with Christ, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. For he says, ‘At an acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped you.’ See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation! We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry…” (2 Cor 6:1-3) Paul’s intent is a defense of his ministry and his theology of life in Christ, but he also exhorts the Corinthians that life in Christ is a life lived wide-open; a life that is full of love and possibilities…and, importantly, that life begins now! And so, back to the patio, that is a parking lot, that is a patio – do not wait for life to align exactly as you believe it must look before jumping off and getting involved in all that life has to offer. The sooner you jump and join the fun, the better off you will be…and the better off everyone else around you will be because you have joined the party. Paul lists all the hardships he and his friends have endured (2 Cor 6:4-13) but ends this section of his letter by telling the Corinthians that the hardships have not prevented his participation in the “here and now” of life and in the acceptance of the grace of God given to him: “We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians; our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affections, but only in yours. In return – I speak as to children – open wide your hearts also.” (2 Cor 6:11-13) So, open wide your hearts and be open to the possibilities of life – even if the patio looks like a parking lot…

“Traveling the Pilgrim road”

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Fifth Sunday of Easter (Acts 8:26-40)  05/06/2012

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From my earliest days of school I can remember learning about the Pilgrims of the Bay Colony and their struggles to live in a land that was new and foreign to them. Growing up in New England, the story of how these early settlers survived their first winter through the generosity and instruction of the native people they encountered created powerful images of two worlds coming together for the good. In thanksgiving for the bountiful harvest that was granted to them through the grace of God, these early Pilgrims took time out of their day and they ate turkey, they watched football and took a nap late in the afternoon…oh wait, that was last year! The first Thanksgiving was a bit different from the celebrations of today, but the Pilgrims of nearly four centuries ago did share something with pilgrims that set out on journeys today – pilgrims are in search for the grace and love of God as it is to be found in our world. Last Sunday at the forum we heard stories and saw many wonderful pictures of the mission trip to Cuba; and although the journey was a mission trip, the experience was also a pilgrimage to a special place where God’s grace is to be discovered among the people of Cuba…and this discovery cannot help but transform the traveling pilgrim. This morning in our Sunday forum we were introduced to the J2A pilgrimage to Belize. For the young men and women of the J2A class, their pilgrimage comes as a continuing element of their growth and development as young Christians. And this is the very idea of pilgrimage: a pilgrim sets out on a journey to discover things unknown, marvel at mysteries never experienced, and ultimately, to imagine how all these wonders point to the grace of God. The pilgrim sets out on a journey confident that the road traveled will provide a unique experience and foster the growth and development of one’s faith. Continue reading →

“The Incarnate God among us”

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The Third Sunday of Easter (Luke 24:36-48)  4/22/2012

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Several months ago the Global Missions Committee began planning a trip to visit our companion church in Cuba. As the planning continued over the course of several weeks we learned more about the travel arrangements, the needs of the church in Santa Cruz del Norte, and we learned more about the Cuban people of our companion parish. Two weeks ago today, on Easter Sunday, we packed our cars full of eight bags of needed supplies and readied ourselves for an early Monday morning, arriving at the airport before sunrise. Our journey continued and with each moment we moved closer and closer to the community of Santa Cruz: we navigated through security lines, encountered long bag check lines, we lost our luggage, we found our luggage, and we finally arrived in Havana. We soon met Father Frank, members of the Cathedral staff, and when we arrived in Santa Cruz del Norte on Wednesday we met the eagerly waiting members of our companion church – all in the flesh. We can learn many important pieces of information via email and over the phone, but experiencing people up close and in the flesh is an experience that cannot be matched by any form of long distance communication. Throughout our week long visit to Cuba, our personal interactions with our Cuban friends profoundly shaped our experience and were the source of our lasting impression of their hospitality and grace. Continue reading →

“Will Our Children Have Faith?”

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Will our children have faith? An interesting question, and the title of an informative and insightful book by John Westerhoff, III. Although first published in 1976 and revised in 2000, the book is just as relevant as the first day it was printed. And you might wonder, is it important that our children have faith…is this aspect of our lives important to us, both individually and collectively? The Pew Forum on Religious and Public Life published a study in December 2009 entitled “How Religious is your State?” – the results varied, but the national averages showed that slightly more than half of those surveyed thought weekly worship attendance and daily prayer were important, while about 70% were certain of the existence of God. So, at least in some degree (and definitions vary widely, of course) faith in God still has significance in our society. This begs the question, if something is important, what are we doing about it? Westerhoff opens his book with the following words: “It is a truism that Christian faith and education are inevitable companions. Wherever living faith exists, there is a community endeavoring to know, understand, live, and witness to that faith.”[i] Again, what are we actually doing about the development of our faith; how are we “endeavoring to know, understand, live, and witness to that faith.” Certainly there are many wonderful programs alive and well throughout the country, but there are also many disturbing trends that appear to be going unnoticed. Continue reading →

“Blessed are you, saints of God”

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All Saints’ Day (Matthew 5:1-12)  11/06/2011

This morning we celebrate the feast of All Saints’ Day. The feast of All Saints’ is a day of celebration and thanksgiving for the saints who have gone before us. In the most stringent understanding of “saint,” those given the saintly title have been those who have exemplified a Christian life of sacrifice and loving care toward others; a life that has been carefully examined and granted a status that is seemingly beyond the reach of most of us. However, the more modern understanding (and by modern I mean the last 500 hundred years or so) of a saintly life is typically more broad, hoping to capture the essence of what the saints of God strive to be – the life of one who claims to be a child of God and a follower of his only Son, Jesus Christ. As we sang in our opening hymn this morning, “I sing a song of the saints of God,” and we can all hope to be one too! Continue reading →

“Living Lent throughout Christian History – Colonial America”

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Each period of history throughout the Christian tradition has offered its unique contribution to our understanding of Lent. Select the link below to view an outline of the particular experiences of Colonial America and the establishment of the new American Prayer Book, based on the life and religious experiences of the community in the United States. I hope you will discover new insights that will help you on your Lenten journey.

Living Lent throughout Christian History – Colonial America

“Living Lent throughout Christian History – Medieval Monasticism”

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Each period of history throughout the Christian tradition has offered its unique contribution to our understanding of Lent. Select the link below to view an outline of the particular experiences of the medieval period and I hope you will discover new insights that will help you on your Lenten journey.

Living Lent throughout Christian History – Medieval Monasticism

“Living Lent throughout Christian History – The Ancient Church”

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Each period of history throughout the Christian tradition has offered its unique contribution to our understanding of Lent. Select the link below to view an outline of the particular experiences of the Ancient Christian Church and I hope you will discover new insights that will help you on your Lenten journey.

Living Lent throughout Christian History – The Ancient Church