Fishing

Last Sunday, we heard Saint John’s narrative of the call of the first disciples. In that account, Jesus first disciples were directed to him by John the Baptist. One of those disciples, Andrew, went of his own accord and told his brother, Peter, about Jesus. Among other things, we are given the earliest examples of evangelism. Those who follow Jesus were all told about him by someone else.

Today, we heard Saint Matthew’s account of the call of the first disciples, and it was a bit different. In this narrative, Jesus himself approaches his future disciples, including Peter and Andrew, in the midst of their regular routine – they are hard at work fishing – and he simply says to them: “follow me.” They follow him.

One of the challenges of being a Christian comes from our own scriptural texts. They don’t always agree. One perspective held by many scholars today holds that Matthew and John are offering two different versions of the same initial call. On the other hand, most commentators in the early church held the view that the Gospel accounts each tell part of the story of Jesus – each adding details that the others do not contain. In this vein, Saint John Chysostom, archbishop of Constantinople at the turn of the 5th century A.D., offers a solution to this textual difficulty that I find particularly elegant.

Chysostom refers to Saint Matthew’s account of the call of the disciples as the second call. He notes that the first call, narrated by Saint John, occurs in the wilderness where John was baptizing. There, John the Baptist directs Andrew to Jesus, and in turn Andrew brings Peter to Jesus. Our gospel account today, narrated by Saint Matthew, takes place after John the Baptist has been arrested and put in prison. After hearing of John’s arrest, Jesus withdraws to Galilee while those initial disciples withdraw and return to work. Once Jesus begins preaching he again encounters Andrew and Peter – and James and John – and tells them to follow him. The fact that they will become fishers of men will mirror this process. Chrysostom says: “[Jesus] neither resisted them at first when they desired to withdraw from him, nor having withdrawn themselves, did he let them go altogether. He gave way when they moved aside from him and came again to win them back. This, after all, is exactly what fishing is all about.” Fishing is all about luring the fish over and over again until at last the fish is caught.

Some of my earliest memories are fishing with my father and my sister in Maine. We had a tiny boat and we would often fish for Flounder and Mackerel. Once, I remember my sister caught a lobster. She reeled in her line and there, holding onto the hook with its claw, was a lobster. When it got into the boat it let go – it was never caught, it seemed to have come willingly. If my sister could do that every time she dropped her lure into the water, she would be the greatest fisherman the world has ever seen. Sadly, that was the only time it ever happened. Every other time, when she or I or my father caught anything, it was either by dumb luck, snagging a fish that was just passing by, or through careful tired and true fishing techniques: dropping the lure into the water and waiting until a fish took note of it, moving it out of sight and then returning – over and over – until at last the fish just had to take a bite.

I like Chrysostom’s take because my experience of evangelism has been like fishing. Rarely have I seen an instantaneous conversion. I have met many people who have been directed to Christ by someone else. I, myself, am one of those people: told about Jesus by my parents, my friends, and my mentors; brought up and led by the hand towards Jesus much like Peter was led by Andrew. I have also met many people who in their middle of the daily routine have encountered Christ in a way that dramatically changed their lives. I am one of those people too: I have encountered Body of Christ in the world in ways that have deeply affected and changed me, surprised by grace in the middle of the mundane. The Christian that I am today and the vast majority of Christians that I encounter, however, have been shaped in both ways.

Like those first apostles, I believe that we have all been called to be fishers of men – called by our Lord to spread the good news of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to every man, woman, and child that we encounter. But I also know that evangelism is rarely like catching a lobster on a fishing line. It takes time, it takes patience, and sometimes it takes luck.

God has filled every one of us with great gifts to use to spread the Gospel: We all have been given a different set of lures and fishing tackle. These gifts can come in the form of time or money to help further the mission of Saint Mary’s and other churches. My wife and I pledge at three different churches because we know that our support makes a difference and helps spread the Gospel to people we might never even meet. Every gift makes a difference.

Also, I think it’s a plus that we all are more comfortable fishing in different environments so that like the apostles, we can cover more ground and reach a greater variety of people. Saint Mary’s location in Times Square means that an enormous variety of people comes through the doors. One of us can meet someone here today and change a life in a way that the rest of us might not be able to. I think our differences are an enormous gift from God that we can use to spread the Gospel to other different people.

I also think its good that that we have time on our side. If we don’t have a productive day, there is always tomorrow or next week. Like every fisherman, we continue because we know today might bring another great catch. And tomorrow might too.

As each of us continues to be shaped by the power of the God coming into our lives, may God make evangelists of us all, give us power to use the gifts he has given to us to spread the Gospel, and fill us with the patience that his Son, Jesus Christ, showed with his own disciples. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Holy Name

At the start of my discernment for Ordination I met with the Reverend Anne Richards who was, at the time, Canon for Ministry in the Diocese of New York. At that meeting she asked me to tell her a brief history of my life and how I gotten to the point where I found myself sitting in her office, discerning the priesthood. I talked and talked and when I was finished, she said something to me that I have never forgotten.

She asked: “In all of that what didn’t you tell me about?” I didn’t know. “Jesus, you never mentioned the name of Jesus.”

“Oh”, I said, “I thought that was self-evident – I mean, it is after all the church, its all about Jesus.”

“No”, she replied. “Its never self evident. As a church leader, its always necessary to talk about Jesus, even when it might seem you don’t need to.”

Today we are celebrating the holy name of Jesus. To put it lightly, the name of Jesus is abused by many people in the world. Inserted into conversation as any other curse word might be. In my view, the use of the name of Jesus on the lips of many Christians is equally problematic. There are plenty of Christians who think that they don’t need to talk about Jesus because who he is and what he means is self evident to those they are speaking (or writing) to. I’m here today to tell you that it is not.

When we celebrate Christmas and the joy of Emanuel (God With Us), we are celebrating Jesus. Our Gospel is about one thing: telling others about Jesus. The angels told the good news of Jesus to the shepherds. The shepherds went and saw Jesus and went out spreading the good news of Jesus to others. Spreading the good news of Jesus didn’t stop there. John the Baptist witnessed to all Judea that Jesus was the Christ. The apostles witnessed Jesus risen from the dead and they spread that good news to others. Saint Paul encountered the risen Lord Jesus and it changed his life and he told everyone he encountered about Jesus, going so far as to write: at the name of Jesus every knee should bow.

At the start of this new year, I hope and pray that each of us can boldly proclaim the name of Jesus to those around us. Its never self evident. As a Christian, its always necessary to talk about Jesus, even when it might seem you don’t need to.

Christmas 1, Evensong

Christmastide is the season when we celebrate God with Us: Emanuel. Celebrations of Christmas are rarely confined to the church building. They flow out into the streets and public spaces and into people’s homes. One of my favorite images of spreading the good news of God in Christ if from tonight’s first reading from Isaiah. “Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent.” The message of God’s salvation proclaimed beyond the walls of the city to those outside. I think as Christians we are called to do this.

One might ask how: I have found that a great way to broaden my own vocabulary as a Christian is to read the Bible: The apostles who encountered Jesus wrote about it in ways that have continued to have great meaning for Christians.

Many of the basic images and most of the vocabulary of the church comes from the writings of the New Testament. A great example of that can be found in tonight’s reading when Paul speaks of the church as the Body of Christ. There are many others.
Our Prayer Book also uses the vocabulary of the Bible. Many of the prayers, and responses are either taken directly from the Bible or rephrased in a way that resonates with Scripture. A great way to learn the how to speak about Jesus to others is through the daily and weekly prayer of the church. Praying and hearing about Jesus makes it easier to begin to speak about Jesus in the same way.

Another great way to learn how to speak about Jesus is by reading through the Bible. I lead a Bible Study most Wednesday nights – we will resume on January 9, 2008. We have been, and will continue to read the letters of Saint Paul, author of our second reading tonight.

This Christmastide, I hope our voices, will not be silent. I hope they will imitate the seasons decorations and spread beyond the walls of the church to those outside as we each proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ.

Saint Nicholas

Sermon: ADVENT 1, THURSDAY, DAILY MASS:
PSALM 118:19-24; ISAIAH 26:1-6; MATTHEW 7:21-27
(Evening Mass)

Tonight we celebrate Saint Nicholas. You may know Nicholas as Santa Claus, or even the patron saint of children, but he's also the patron saint of seafarers and sailors.

There are many seafarers and sailors on my mother's side of my family, fishermen, lobstermen, people that work on boats, people that sail boats. I'm not a professional, but I am also a pretty good sailor. Onoe thing that is very important when you are sailing is to make sure the boat is ship-shape. No holes or cracks, everything tightened and taught, lines checked, etc. The wind may change and the sea may be rough, but if the basics have been covered, you are generally in good shape.

Our Gospel tonight is one of my favorites. Jesus speaks of importance of building on a firm foundation. Like a well prepared ship, a house built on a firm foundations can better weather any storm.

I beleive that living as a Christian begins with the firm foundation of faith in the resurrection. God's love, I think, is best shown in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That love that conquors death cannot be shaken. Going forth into the world with faith in that love makes a difference. As Saint Paul says, nothing can conquor the love of God, not sin, not sickness, not poverty, not even death.

May the love of God so fill our hearts that we may have the strength to weather the difficulties we face in our own lives, and let us, following the example of Saint Nicholas, spread the knowledge of the gift of God's love to all those around us.

Saint Nicholas

Sermon: ADVENT 1, THURSDAY, DAILY MASS:
PSALM 118:19-24; ISAIAH 26:1-6; MATTHEW 7:21-27

Today is the Feast of Saint Nicholas. Devotion to Saint Nicholas was enormous in parts of Europe in the early days of this country, and it is through his name in Dutch that most people now know of Saint Nicholas as Santa Claus. The images of the man in the big red suit bringing gifts to children stem from the fact that Nicholas is the patron saint of children.

Our reading from Isaiah today states :Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps faith may enter in.: The legends of Santa Claus tell of him coming into people's houses and leaving a variety of different gifts. Nobody ever puts a lock on the door or the chimney to try to keep Santa out. Who knows what gifts he might bring.

I think that image works well both with the open mission of the church. Throughout this Advent, I pray that all churches will open their doors to whomever might come through. Each of us brings many different gifts that God has given us to help spread the Gospel, and the same is true about everyone who walks through those doors. May our hearts and hands be open to the new people who enter our lives, our churches and our mission this Advent.

Saint Clement of Alexandria

ADVENT 1, WEDNESDAY, DAILY MASS:
PSALM 23; ISAIAH 25:6-9; MATTHEW 15:29-38

Today we celebrate the life of Saint Clement of Alexandria. Clement lived in the late second century. He was an extremely intellegent and eductaed man. He was the head of the famous Christian Catechitcal School in Alexandria, where he taught many important Christian thinkers, including Origen.

Clement and his peers encountered what is commonly called Gnosticism. Gnostic groups were usually recognized because they taught that Jesus had passed down secret knowledge about salvation to only a select few of his disciples, and they likewise had passed that knowledge only to a seletc few others. Clement, in all that he did, tried to counteract this, by teaching that the love of God was not a secret, but was made available through Jesus Christ for all people.

Our gospel today tells of the Feeding of the 4000. Did you notice how after three days in the wilderness, Jesus gave the suddenly abundant food to his disciples, then the disciples gave all of that food the crowds, then those crowds dispersed into the world? That, I think, clearly mirrors the resurrection. After three days, Jesus rose from the dead and apeared to his disciples. They then spread the news of his resurrection to the crowds, those crowds then dispersed around the globe and spread the good news of the resurrection to the whole world.

I think we can follow the example of Saint Clement, a saint who spread the knowlegde of the faith to many others. No matter how we are being feed spiritually, whether it is through mission or education or anything at all, I hope that each of us can take what we have been fed with and pass it along to others.

Growing Up

Angelus Article
http://www.stmvirgin.org/article104554.htm

My son, Liam, is growing up fast; we celebrated his first birthday on Tuesday, November 13, 2007. We had Cookie-Monster Cake because he likes Sesame Street. When I was a boy I remember watching Cookie Monster eat cookies on Sesame Street. I remember counting numbers with the Count. I remember Ernie singing about the joys of bathing. Overall, Sesame Street hasn’t changed all that much. The only big difference is Elmo. When I was a boy Elmo was a friendly red monster who hung out with Grover (a friendly blue monster) and said very little. Now he has his own fifteen-minute segment each morning that educates kids on everything from running and jumping to digital cameras.

My wife, Nicole, and I are trying to do what we can to make sure Liam gets exposed to as many good things as possible (what parent doesn’t try to do that?). One thing that most parents can agree on is sound education. I think Sesame Street is a great tool for children of a certain age, but at some point we all grow up and go to school, leaving Elmo and friends behind for teachers and coaches and other mentors, the memory of whom – just like Cookie Monster, the Count and Ernie – will bring smiles to our faces years later. They were all a part of shaping us and educating us.

I have always been convinced that many people learn about Christianity through the liturgy. If you had asked me as a boy what Easter meant I probably would have sung a verse from a hymn or the Easter Acclamation: Alleluia, Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! The prayers that are said each day or each season have certainly shaped my understanding of the Faith. As I grow older, I get more and more from the sermon: there is no substitute for hearing how the Good News of Christ has changed someone else. Books read, classes taken in seminary and classes that I have taught have educated me further still. Since the dawn of time, I think, parents have been saying the same thing to their children: “You have a lot to learn.” As a father and a son, I believe that’s true for all of us. There is a great deal that we can all learn about many things, not the least of which is the faith in Jesus Christ that we share with each other and all the saints throughout history.

It is fun to imagine the future. Someday Liam will probably be assigned the task of drawing a picture of Jesus or playing the role of shepherd in a nativity scene just like his dad did. He will someday learn the words of the Lord’s Prayer and get confused between the various Creeds like his dad still does. He will learn about the Church just by being part of it on Sunday mornings. I hope that someday he’ll find himself in a Bible Study or a class on the Sacraments as part of some adult Christian Education program. We outgrow certain forms of education, but does that mean we stop learning? I don’t think so.

Since I arrived at Saint Mary’s as the Curate for Liturgy and Education I have tried different approaches to offering Christian Education so that it can become part of the regular life of the parish. I think the current approach seems to be working. Christian Education on Sundays, either before or after Solemn Mass, has proven to be popular, so popular that we have grown out of the space we have been using for the last three years – there wasn’t enough room to close the door of Saint Benedict’s last week. Beginning this Sunday, November 18, all Christian Education classes will take place in the newly renovated Mission House on the Second Floor.

If you haven’t been to a class yet this fall, it's not too late! Robert McCormick is offering a class on Liturgical Music following Solemn Mass this Sunday. On the four Sundays of Advent, at 10:00 AM, the Right Reverend Richard F. Grein will lead a series exploring the parables told by Jesus in the Gospels. Also, the Spring 2008 schedule is nearly complete, and I am very excited about the future of Christian Education at Saint Mary’s. The classes are growing because people love to learn.

Into the fog....

Sermon: Proper 27, Year C, 2007.

The first details of my life that I really remember are from 1981. I remember turning 5 years old. We were on vacation on Monhegan Island in Maine during the summer of 1981, there was cake, there were friends and family, they were balloons, and I got a fishing pole – it was fantastic. That same summer my mother’s older brother, my Uncle Paul, his wife Terry, and my three cousins came up to visit the Island. When they took the boat back to the mainland, it was a really foggy day. I remember waving goodbye as the boat disappeared into the fog. That was the last time we ever saw Paul. He died suddenly of a heart aneurism a few weeks later.

A few years later my Aunt Terry remarried. Uncle Dave has been my uncle, a great husband, and a great father to my cousins for nearly 25 years. In heaven who will be Aunt Terry’s husband? My Uncle Paul or my Uncle Dave? Who will be father to my cousins? Does it matter? It would to the Sadducees. But they don’t believe in the resurrection, so it obviously doesn’t matter much to them.

All week departed friends and family of members of the parish have been remembered by name at Mass. Each day I have read name after name after name of people who have died. It’s a hard week for the clergy here, I think, because we have to read the names. I imagine its just as hard for those who come to mass each day and listen. My belief in the resurrection doesn’t begin to worry about whether or not my cousins have to choose between their father and their step-father. I believe they will be thrilled to introduce their father Dave to their father Paul.

I want you to think of someone who has died that you loved. Maybe there are many people. Think of them for a moment.

[PAUSE]

That feeling of loss is exactly what Peter, James, John, Mary, and all the other disciples felt when Jesus was dead. They missed him, they longed to see his face, but they knew that he was dead and gone.

Now, imagine the joy the apostles felt when they first saw Jesus standing, resurrected, in their midst. Imagine the joy that Mary felt when she realized that she wasn’t speaking to the gardener, but to Jesus. Do you think they cared who would get to sit at his right hand or his left hand in the kingdom? Do you think they cared about anything other than the fact that all that they longed for was theirs? They cared only that he was there. Their reaction wasn’t to ask questions about details, their reaction to rejoice and because of that joy, they spread the fact of his resurrection to others.

I can’t give you details about what life after the resurrection is like. I can tell you one thing though. My uncle didn’t disappear into the fog for ever, he lives in Christ and my cousins and my aunt and my uncle Dave and my mother and I and all of our family and all of his friends will be with him again. All of those names, names after name after name, will be with us again. What we have longed for in Christ will be made present in Christ. Now they see God face to face, and so will we.

Like the first apostles, I believe that we are all called to spread the joy of the resurrection to others. Joy is something that everyone can wants to have and something that everyone remembers. My first memory isn’t my uncle’s death. My first memory was my fifth birthday. My family was there. My friends were there. And I got a fishing pole.

I can tell you about the joy of my getting a fishing pole but it doesn’t compare the joy of the resurrection. Listen to what Saint John says: I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away."

I pray that we can all speak to others about the joy that we have had, the joy that is coming into our lives, and about the joy that we know is to come.

Praying

Sermon: Proper 25C, 2007

The Gospel today gives us two examples of praying.

Here is the first: God, I thank thee that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.

Contrast that with the second prayer: God, be merciful to me a sinner!

The tax collector presents himself to God as he believes he is: someone who needs God. The Pharisee presents himself to God as he believes he is: someone who is not like other people.


I am teaching a class following Solemn Mass on Lancelot Andrewes, a Priest and Bishop in the Church of England who lived about 400 years ago. He was famous for two things: his preaching and his praying. While I was preparing for this sermon and for the class, I noticed that Andrewes preached a number of sermons on prayer that were published in the form of a series. In the first of these sermons he says that the first part of prayer is making sure that one is able to pray at all. We need to open ourselves to God since it is only through the grace of God that we are able to pray at all. This is done through confession and repentance. Only when we have stripped away those things which keep us from God are we able to accept God. Even this, of course can only be done by the grace of God. Andrewes didn’t quote today’s Gospel, but I think that he could have to give an example of what it looks like to begin praying.


In practice, we live this out at Baptism when we speak of dying to the world and rising in Christ. We live this out at Mass when we kneel and make our confession before receiving the sacrament.

In addition to that, the church has long recommended making a personal Confession before certain days of the church year like Christmas and Easter. From my experience, I strongly recommend making a personal confession. You don’t need to make one to be in a right relationship with God, but I think if you think you don’t need to be put into a right relationship to God, you might be in need of making one.


For me, making a personal confession is different from the general confession in Mass. It allows me not only to unload those specific things that I have been carrying around with me like empty suitcases – things that do nothing except hold me back from God. It also gives me the opportunity to truly reflect on my relationship with other people and my relationship with God. Am I better than other people? No. Do I need God? Yes. I have always found after a confession that I am able to pray and draw closer to the Lord in ways that I couldn’t have imagined before the confession. I’ve also found that no matter how right I felt with God before the confession, everything in my life is clearer, brighter and closer to God.

I think I can compare it to something that happened to me this summer. I got glasses for distance. I had no idea what I was missing. I used to enjoy watching sports on TV, now I can actually see what’s happening and its made a huge difference. I think making a confession can be a lot like that. I always forget what I’ve been missing in terms my relationship with God until after my confession.

So, I recommend it. Saint Mary’s offers confession every Saturday and by appointment. You don’t need to be a bad person to make a confession. You don’t need to be a really good person to make a confession. You just have to be a normal person who, like the rest of us, by the grace of God is trying to draw closer the Lord.

Pledging

Sermon: Proper 24, Year 1, Evensong, 2007

I think that both readings tonight are have fairly obvious points. First, we are called to help those who are in need of help and mercy. Second, we are called, like all of Jesus disciples to spread the Gospel to new people.

With those greater theme’s in mind, I was struck by a particular passage in tonight’s Gospel. It was related to a passage in Paul that we read in the Bible Study that I am leading on Saint Paul throughout this Fall. In the 9th chapter of first Corinthians Paul writes: The Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. But I have made no use of any of these rights.

Though Paul does not quote a saying of Jesus, I think its likely that he is referring to something like what we hear in today’s Gospel reading from St. Luke. Jesus says to the disciples that he is sending out: Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals…. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages.

Though he admits that he could expect to be supported by the Church community, Paul uses his self-sufficiency as one example of how going one step further than what he was called to do can make a huge difference in spreading the Gospel. Though I’m not sure his situation is the same as mine, I can tell you, as a priest who is supported by this congregation, that Paul’s boast is quite impressive.

We are called to help those who are in need and to spread the Gospel to new people. After reflecting both on tonight’s Gospel passage and Paul’s attempt to live out his calling as an apostle, I think Paul’s example can serve us today.

Going one step further, even if it’s a small step, can make a huge difference. Its not always easy to see how this can be true, but I think I can give an example in my life that might illustrate this point. I was asked yesterday by my Grandmother what I thought amounted to a “good” pledge. I told her the amount wasn’t the point, it was making the pledge in the first place. The hardest pledge I ever made was the first one I made. It was one dollar a week. It wasn’t much, but it changed my life in a big way. I knew that I was doing something to support the work of the Church and its mission to spread the Gospel and help those in need. As the years went by, I increased my pledge a little bit until I got to where I am today – 10%. Baby steps got me there.

Going one step further, even if it’s a small step, can make a huge difference. If you noticed the back of the bulletin, there is a stewardship blurb that discusses the financial situation Saint Mary’s is in. The board has come up with a plan to solve the problems that we have through baby steps, taken by everyone who cares about Saint Mary’s.

I invite you to join me in pledging to financially support Saint Mary’s if you don’t already do that, and I invite you to increase your pledge like my wife and I try to do every year. It doesn’t have to be much, but I think taking that first step is the biggest challenge. I can tell you that it does make a huge difference.

Holy Cross

Holy Cross - 2007

Tonight we celebrate the cross. The feast dates from September 14, 320 AD when the Empress Helena believed she had found the True Cross. She must have experienced the words of Christ, “take up your cross”, in a very real and unique way. Her response was to make the cross available for public veneration – a practice that is imitated worldwide to this day on Good Friday and on Holy Cross Day. In a wonderful sense, she not only took up the cross, she also showed its glory to the world.

I’ve been exploring what those words: “take up your cross” mean to me. One image that keeps coming up in my mind is the image of Jesus naked, wounded, empty-handed, carrying only the cross. Even then, collapsing under its weight. How can I take up the cross? I believe that requires first letting go of those things that prevent me from taking up the cross, in a way, imitating the emptying of God in Christ.

I make my Confession several times each year, first asking a basic question. Where is my heart? I look at where my time, my money, and other resources are going to see where my heart truly is. What are my treasures? How are they being used? Do I budget more money each week for fun with friends than I pledge to the church each week? Do I plan to spend more time relaxing, surfing the net, going out, or watching TV than I plan to spend praying, worshipping God, and practicing charity?

Coming to an honest answer can be difficult. A while back I too a good look at how my money was being spent, I found that the “Church portion” was less than the “entertaining myself portion”. It was and remains a challenge to budget one tenth of my money to the Church. Recently, I’ve focused on how my time is being spent. It is never easy to take up the cross, but I’ve noticed that the more I let go of other things, the less difficult it becomes. I’ve also noticed that when I try to imitate Christ, I am more and more able to show the glory of God in Christ to others.

Today is Holy Cross Day. It is a celebration of the love of God in Christ who, to use the words of the Prayer Book, stretched out his arms on the hard wood of the cross so that all the world might come within the reach of his saving embrace. On the cross Jesus is naked, wounded, and he dies. Yet, through that darkness God acts, and the cross becomes the exaltation of Jesus, glorified to the whole world. I hope the example of Christ, empty-handed yet with his arms free and open to the whole world may inspire all of us to empty ourselves, take up our own cross so that we may share in the glory of the resurrection and, like the saints who came before us, show that glory to the whole world.

The Narrow Door

Sermon Proper 16C, 2007

Lots of people come and go through the doors of Saint Mary’s. Visitors, future members, members, even clergy come and go. I like to think, in the same vein as the hymn, that there is a wideness to the doors of Saint Mary’s like the wideness of the sea. However, I know that it can be difficult to walk through the doors of a church. It’s a serious moment for many people. The world does not always look favorably on the church or those who come and go through its doors – and often for good reason.

The way I see it, there are usually two huge problems. The first is that the church often comes across as mean, stupid and out of touch. I could point to some things done during the Crusades, to the Inquisition, to the church’s involvement in slavery, to the church’s lack of involvement standing up against the Nazis, to Christians blowing up doctors who perform abortions and so forth. But why stop there? It seems to me that TV, books, and the internet is full of average Christians telling all of we’re awful people. Type in “am I going to hell?” on Google and the first website that pops up is entitled: “You’re going to Hell”. Well at least that’s settled.

The second problem is that the church often comes across as boring. On Tuesday I made the mistake of flipping through the Christian Worship channels. It was like watching a train wreck. I couldn’t take my eyes off the cantor and the priest. The cantor kept waving his arms around as he bleated out the responses which were supposed to be sung by the people and I was sure the priest was asleep. It was the lamest thing I have ever seen. As a priest it was a lesson in what not to do, but as a Christian I was embarrassed.

I believe that we are in a unique position at Saint Mary’s to do something about this. Obviously the whole world isn’t going to come through our doors, but lots of people do. At one point a few years ago an official count numbered over 500 people coming and going on a hot August weekday. Changing people’s perceptions happens one person at a time. We can’t change everyone’s mind about the church, but we have an opportunity to show anyone that comes through our doors that some churches may be mean and boring, but not all of them and not this one.

Our Gospel today speaks of the Narrow Door. Jesus says we ought to strive to enter by the narrow door. He says many will seek to enter and not be able to. There are lots of ways to read this text, but I think on some level, no matter how wide open the doors of a church may be, for many people they still look and feel quite narrow. For many reasons people may seek to enter through those doors and not be able to. What can we, as members of this church, do to make sure that we are not one of those reasons?

Jesus talks about those who are last being first. He says people will come from east and west to sit at the God’s table. In Luke’s Gospel the last time Jesus talks about the first being last is at the Last Supper. He instructs his disciples that they are not called to be served, but to serve. I believe that we are Christ’s Body in the world and as such each of us is called to assist others, just like Jesus himself did, as they strive to enter and eat at God’s table. We can open the doors of the church. We can offer a warm and generous welcome to friends and strangers alike. We can open our hearts and our arms to them and offer to help then find a place in this church. But I think we can also offer to others the things that make this place so special to each of us.

When I ask myself: what do I love so much about this church I come up with many answers. How can I offer those things to someone else? Here’s a few: I love the occasional time that I an thurifer at a midweek mass. Its not boring at all, its awesome. I can offer that experience to someone else, if you are interested in serving at the altar, speak to me after Mass. I enjoy learning about the Bible. The Bible doesn’t have to be mean, in fact, its written in the Bible that God is Love. I can offer that experience too. If you are interested in learning about Saint Paul, come to our Wednesday Evening Dinner and Bible Studies. Each of us, I think, loves this place for different reasons. I think that those reasons often appeal to people who are striving to find their place at God’s table, and I think that those reasons can often help bring that person in.

Right relationshios

June 17, 2007
Proper 6C

One of the important conflicts of the early church involved customs and ritual. As illustrated in our Gospel today, one such custom was the fact that Jews of that time often refused to eat or even associate with known sinners or non-Jews (known as gentiles). As the Good News of Christ began to spread beyond Jerusalem, the apostles were confronted with the fact that many people who believed in Jesus were not Jews. This fact brought up the question of whether Jewish Christians could even associate with non-Jewish Christians. Eventually – and after what appears to be a protracted battle – the Church came to the decision that a Christian was not someone who observed Jewish customs, but someone who believed in Jesus.

It sounds silly today – of course a Christian is someone who believes in Jesus – but I actually think that that problem faced by the early church is a problem we face today. To understand what I mean I think it will be helpful to look closer at how the conflict over Jewish and non-Jewish Christians was resolved.

Saint Peter and Saint Paul play key roles in this conflict and its resolution. Saint Luke, in the Acts of the Apostles, tells us about a dream that Saint Peter had that directed him – against his will – to associate, eat with, and even baptize gentiles. In today’s reading from his Letter to the Galatians, Saint Paul tells us of a confrontation he had with Saint Peter over (what appears to be) the aftermath of this very event. He writes: “Before certain men came from James, [Peter] ate with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party.” Essentially, Saint Peter caved into peer pressure and again separated himself from “the wrong people”.

Saint Paul writes what he told Saint Peter: “We ourselves, who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, yet who know that a man is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ, and not by works of the law, because by works of the law shall no one be justified.”

I always get bogged down by the word “justified”. Sometimes it helps me to go to the original Greek to understand better what the text is saying. The Greek word that is so often translated as “justified” basically means “to put in a right relationship”. Thus, what Paul explains is that we are not put into a right relationship with God by following the law or by performing certain commands of the law, rather, the only thing that puts us is a right relationship with God is believing in Jesus Christ.

In our Gospel today Jesus deals with this same conflict and comes to the exact same resolution. When Jesus is eating at the house of Simon the Pharisee, a woman who is a known sinner comes to anoint Jesus’ feet with oil. Jesus is condemned by those he is eating with for allowing her near him. To their astonishment Jesus announces that this sinful woman’s sins are forgiven. Why are her sins forgiven? Because of something she did or didn’t do? No. Because she believed in Jesus. Jesus tells her: “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”


If Saint Peter needed to be reminded, then I certainly need to be reminded as well, and I imagine many Christians do to. Christians, beginning with Saint James and Saint Peter have separated themselves from other Christians for many different reasons. All of those reasons have one thing in common – not one of them puts them or us in the right relationship with God, and I think that its pretty obvious as well that none of those reasons puts us in a right relationship with each other. How many denominations are there? How many Christians are there who look across the aisle and doubt that the person they see is in a right relationship with God?

Christian unity isn’t an abstract idea. It begins and often breaks down over food. Peter and James objected to eating meals with the wrong people. Simon the Pharisee and his friends objected to a sinful woman’s presence at their table. Today Christians will often eat with anyone, until it comes to eating bread and drinking wine at Communion.

Jesus ate with saints, sinners, and everyone in between. I believe that if we are to remain in a right relationship with Christ, we are called to do what we can to be in the right relationship with the Body of Christ in the world. For me, Holy Communion is a good place to begin a right relationship with other Christians. I believe in Jesus, and so I come to receive his Body and his Blood. No matter how unrighteous the person next to me might appear to me, why would I assume he or she believed in anything other than Jesus? Sometimes that can be very difficult for me to swallow, but I believe that it’s a good way to start getting in the right relationship with the rest of the Body of Christ.

Reading Deeper

YEAR 1, EASTER 5, SUNDAY, EVENSONG & BENEDICTION:
LEVITICUS 8:1-13,30-36; MATTHEW 7:7-14; JOHN 6:13-21

There is a famous Classical biographer named Plutarch who lived about 2000 years ago and wrote a number of "Lives" of various famous people. I am curretnly reading a complete collection of these. I recently read abotu Romulus, who is reported to have founded Rome, and Theseus, who is reported to have ordanized the body politic in Athens into a democracy. I thought I knew about Theseus - he killed the Minotaur. I thought I knew about Romulus - he was nursed by a wolf. I did not. Plutarch does his homework, he collects all of the tales, stories, and histories known about the people he writes about and produces an account that informs the reader of everything that is known or even beleived about the persons. I went from being uninformed and ignorant of it, to being immersed in the interesting lives of two people.

In our first reading tonight we read about the long ordination and consecration of Aaron and the Holy Place. It takes days and it is a dense account in Leviticus. Our second reading narrates how Jesus called us to enter by the narrow gate, by a way that can sometimes be hard. I think we ought to be warry of making quick decisions, assuming we know everything about something when we a diving deeper into a book, a judgement, or a decisons will qucikly show us how much more there is to know.

I think that it is important for Christian to weigh options and take time to make decisions. One thing in particular I think we can all dive deeper into is the Bible itself. Often Christians assume they know what the Bible says; many decisions and judgements have been made on such assumptions. In the reformation some people thought that the Bible mandated that they rip out organs, statues and artwork from churched. I think looking back, that decsions was hasty and misguided.

I have been leading a Bible Study on the Maccabees and have noticed again and again how certain passages have lept off the page. Some are funny: the writer refers to a certain king as "almost as long in years as he is in folly". Some passages are instrictive: after much debate the Macabees decide that a necessary problem they will have to deal with is defending themselves on the Sabbath from bodily harm.

In May, at Saint Mary's, we celebrate Mary. Not everyone does this, but the root of our love of Mary comes from scripture. This month, I would like to encourage you to dig deeper into the Scriptures. Discover Mary in the Gospels and her types in the Old Testament. Discover Leviticus, its complex rites, law and narrative. Discover a book not ever read before. I know every time I read the scriputres something new jumps out at me. Guided by the Spirit, I know that the samewill happen to you too.

Open Doors

This is from my Angelus (the Saint Mary's weekly newsletter) article for this week.

It can be a challenge competing vocally with the Fire Department of New York or an ambulance going past the church during Mass. When the weather is warm the 47th Street and 46th Street doors of the church are open. This allows some fresh Midtown air into the church and it opens our wonderful acoustics to the joyful sound of honking, car alarms, and sirens. The fresh air really is a plus and the normal sounds of the city act as a reminder that we are in Times Square. More importantly, the open doors offer an enormous welcoming gesture to those walking by the church. People hear and see that the church is doing something and often they simply walk in to see what’s going on. It seems to me that this is a very good thing. I don’t know how many people have developed a deep love for Our Lord and Saint Mary’s after wandering through an open door, but I imagine it’s quite a few.

Wonderful liturgy and a gorgeous building are the obvious places our open doors lead to, but I think the idea of open doors need not refer solely to the church building. Christian education, mission, spirituality, concerts, and fellowship events are also open for all. I hope that everyone coming through the doors feels invited to be a part of Saint Mary’s, not as a stranger passing through, but as a sister or brother in Christ being welcomed to the family table. There are many open doors at Saint Mary’s. Here are few that have been on my mind lately.

Sister Laura Katharine has begun oversight of the parish altar guild, the Saint Mary’s Guild. Historically, the Saint Mary’s Guild met on Saturdays for the noon Mass, lunch, a group meeting, and some work time. At one point in the parish history the Guild was so popular that it was divided into different parts each meeting once a month – meaning that effectively part of the Guild met every week. We are reviving this practice: the Saint Mary’s Guild will meet the first Saturday of every month for the 12:10 PM Mass, lunch, a group meeting, and some work time sewing and polishing. It’s a great place to meet other Saint Marians and learn some practical skills. The doors are open and I hope we’ll see some new faces wander in. If you are interested in becoming part of any of our guilds (see http://www.stmvirgin.org/CommunityandFellowship for a list of them all) speak to one of the priests, and we’ll see what we can do to make that a reality right now.

Our music is another area in which we are open. There have been five different concerts and recitals in the last two weeks: all of them open to the public and most of them free. In addition to scheduled concerts, we also offer an organ recital every Sunday before Evensong & Benediction and before most Feast Day weekday Solemn Masses (the next on is Ascension Day, May 17). If you haven’t been to a concert or a recital this year, I recommend catching one before the season ends with the start of summer.

One of the challenges at Saint Mary’s involves growing our Christian Education program. I think our current format works, but there is more work to be done. Currently a class is offered following Solemn Mass on Sundays. The classes last for about 45 minutes (ending at about 1:30 PM) and cover a wide array of subjects. Mr. Robert Picken is currently leading a group through a class on hymns. In a few weeks Sister Deborah Francis and Sister Laura Katharine will offer a presentation on the religious life. Each Wednesday a group gathers after the evening Mass in Saint Benedict’s Study for dinner and a Bible Study. Each week one person supplies a full dinner, another supplies drinks, the next week someone else supplies food and drinks. The doors are open and we’d love to have you join us for a Sunday class or a Wednesday dinner and Bible Study.

There are always new challenges and experiences awaiting us in our ministries at Saint Mary’s. How to open more doors for others to walk through is a challenge for all of us. Many doors are already open at Saint Mary’s. I invite you to consider stepping through some new door and to help us open even more doors for others.

Parks and Private Gardens

YEAR C, EASTER 5, SUNDAY: MASS:
PSALM 145:1-9; ACTS 13:44-52; REVELATION 19:1,4-9; JOHN 13:31-35

I had a conversation with my father yesterday about various types of Christians. We talked about how some Christians seems to value personal morals above almost every other aspect of their faith - sometimes including their faith in the resurrection itself. Likewise we talked about how other Christians sometimes value social justice above every other aspect their faith - again sometimes including their the resurrection. Neither of these values are necessarily bad, and I do think we all focus on certain aspects of our faith as a way of living the Christian life in the world. But what are we called to focus on?

Our Gospel today gets to that question very clearly: what does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? How are we recognized as disciples of Jesus? The answer that Jesus offers is love of others. "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." Taking our love of Christ and letting it go forth from us to others is the essence of Christian evangelism and mission, and I beleive that we are living as disciples in the world when we do that. Taking the love of Christ and bottling it up to purify ourselves and others is all well and good, but If we aren't spreading love to one another, I'm not sure what value it really has for mission or evangelism. In fact, at one point in the Gospels, Jesus himself says that its not important what goes into a man, but what comes out of him that matters.

I have a beautiful roof deck outside of my aprartment. It overlooks part of Times Square and is covered with flowers and plants. Most of you will never ever see it or get to experience it. Compare that to Central Park. I think many people beleive that Central Park is made beautiful by the City, but the truth is that the Park is what it is because of the gifts, donations, and commitment the citizens give to it. In the 70s and 80s when Central Park was maitained by the city, it was ugly and dangerous. Now that it has been claimed by the people and given their attention and care, it is a place open for all people that makes my beautiful little garden ono the roof look plain and barren. My little garden is wonderful but nobody gets any enjoyment out of it other than me and my family and friends; the effort that I take to maintatin it doesn't do much for the public good. Central Park on the other hand is open to all through the efforts of many people. If I had to choose which I like better, I will always choose Central Park.

I think these images translate well to being a Christian in the world. We can value ourselves and try to become perfect Christians offering little to others, or we can value others and use the gifts that we have been given for others. I beleive that we are called to live as Christians for other people. How are we to be recognized as disciples of Christ? By loving one another and showing the love of God that we have expereinced to them.

The Basics

EASTER 4, FRIDAY: ACTS 13:26-33, PSALM 2:6-13, JOHN 14:1-6

Our readings today bring up what are, I believe, the basics of Christian faith. Saint Paul, throughout his letters and speeches, preaches Jesus Christ who was crucified and rose from the dead. The death and resurruection of Jesus is the starting point of Christianity. Every time Christians gather together we procalim the death and resurrection of Christ.

The good news is not just that Jesus died and rose. The good news is that we share in the resurrection of Christ. Jesus himself proclaims this good news, saying that he is the way, the truth and the life. It is Jesus himself who is preparing a place for all of us in his Father's house.

Throughout Eastertide we say the word "Alleluia". That word basically means "Praise God". I believe that the Gospel invites us to praise God for the love that he has shown us in the resurrection of Christ. I also believe that that joy and praise is something that we can share with others. This Eastertide I think we are invited to follow the example of Saint Paul and share the good news of the resurrection with others.

Studying the Bible

EASTER 4, THURSDAY: ACTS 13:13-25, PSALM 89:20-29, JOHN 13:16-20

One of the interesting things about Eastertide is that we read from the Acts of the Apostles as our first reading instead of from the Old Testament. Does this mean that in Easter the Old Testament is somehow less important? Not at all. Both of our readings today (and of course the Psalm selection) show exactly how imoportant the Old Testament was to Jesus and to the early church.

Paul's speech is essentially a short history of the Jewish people as narrated in the Old Testament, beginning with exodus, moving through the kingship of David, ending with John the Baptist and Jesus. He draws a single line united them all in God plan for our salvation. Teaching of this sort can be found all over the Acts of the Apostles, including speaches by Peter, Paul, Stephen and others.

Likewise, Jesus roots God's plan for our salvation, even the betrayal of Judas, in the prophesies of the Old Testament. Throughout the Gospels Jesus quotes the Olt Testament, teaches its meaning to others and even dies with verses of the Psalter on his lips.

I think one of the things that the church encourages all of us to do more of is stufy the Bible, Old and New Testaments. Saint Mary's offers weekly Bible studies, and I recommend them to you if you have time (Wednesday nights at 7:00 PM - with dinner). I also recommend simply reading through a book of the Bible over the course of week. Its not that hard and it can be very reqrding to know the Bible and what is actually written in it. OFten, making sense of what happens in the Gospels and in the Acts of the Apostles (and all of the New Testament) means knowing something about the Old Testament.

Important Decisions & Prayer

EASTER 4, WEDNESDAY: ACTS 12:24-13:5A, PSALM 67, JOHN 12:44-50

Our first reading tonight from the Acts of the Apostles offers an account of one of the most important decisions in Church history - the commision of Paul for mission. After his conversion Paul and Barnabas taught and ministered in Antioch, raising money for those suffering from a famine in Jerusalem. Our reading today begins when Paul and Baranabas return from Jerusalem after delivering the relief to the churches there. The decision, guided through the message of the Holy Spirit, to send out Paul for mission work is made during worship and fasting.

Without worship and fasting, Paul might not have been sent out. The community in Antioch might have thought he was more useful at raising money and teaching them. Through prayer and the Holy Spirit they were led to a decision that might have been very difficult to make otherwise. They sent Paul out into the world to do mission work. I think the results speak for themselves. Paul, filled with the Spirit, spread the Gospel of Jesus to the other side of the known world.

I know that not all of my decisions are made with such pious thoroughness and to be honest, if they were I would have made fewer mistakes in my life. But one decision that was guided by the Spirit was to pursue life in the church - a life which led me to ordained ministry.

I think that the example of the early apostles and prophets in the church is one that we can learn from today, both in our lives and Christians in the world and in our lives as Christians in the church. Prayer, at home, in church, alone, or in groups is essential for discerning the will of God in our lives. Prayer and calling on the guidance of the Holy Spirit often leads us to accept the challenges in our lives that we might otherwise find impossible. What challenge or decision in our lives is awaiting you and me? Whatever it may be, I think that we are called to pray over and through the great decisions in our lives.

Food

YEAR B & C, EASTER 4, MONDAY, DAILY MASS: PSALM 96:1-9; ACTS 11:1-18; JOHN 10:1-10

This past fall I led a Bible Study on Genesis. What people can eat has a suprising history. Adam and Eve and their descendants are allowed to eat vegitables and things that grow. It isn't until after the flood and when Noah and his descendants start eating meat. At the end of Genesis a different issue around food has arisen, the Egyptians refuse to eat with foriegners - this we find out in the story about Joseph and his brothers in Egypt. As the other books of the Penteteuch are written, what can and cannot be eated and who it can be eated with remains an issue. In the early church food continued to be an issue. Jesus tells his followers that what goes into a person is not a problem, rather it is what comes out. Still, early Christians refused to eat certain food that were sacrificed to other gods and in effect ostracized themselves from the larger community.

Today's first reading from Acts runs with this food imagery. Peter's vision of all animals made clean by God spurs him to bring the Gospel to the gentiles, a whole people he had considered "unclean". I'm not sure if we can ever be reminded enough to keep spreading the Gospel to new people. Again and again I think we can take a fresh look at the world we live in and see what new ways use to bring new people to Jesus.