February 1, 2015

IV Epiphany

Deuteronomy 18: 15-20; Psalm 111; 1 Corinthians 8: 1-13, Mark 1: 21-28

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

A few Sundays ago in the church parking lot I encountered a particularly angry person, a person I had known for some time who occasionally would show up on Sundays at another parish I once served. She usually takes medication to stabilize her temperament, but it was very obvious that she did not take it that day.  She yelled at me and called me pretty much every four-letter word in the book. Now I can have a pretty colorful vocabulary myself, but I was no match for her.  I told her, as pastorally as possible, that I needed to call the police if she did not stop. She got in her car and drove away.  

When Jesus encountered an angry man in the temple, he reached out to him and healed him, making him whole probably for the first time in his life. The Bible says the man was possessed by a demon. Maybe he was. Or maybe he was bi-polar, manic, or schizophrenic. It doesn’t what we call it. What matters is how we respond. I regret that my response to the woman was one based in fear, and it could not have been further from how Jesus engaged the man in the temple. Jesus met the man’s hate, not with fear, but with hope.

Jesus models for us a response to another’s painful suffering – to reach out and call it out of them. We are all healers, and as author Henri Nouwen reflects, and the healing we offer is most effective when it comes out of our own wounds.

I am father of a nine year old son with special needs. My journey with him has been one of growth, joy, and wounding, that I never would have anticipated happening in my life. As a priest, I am forever molded by these experiences, and a love of children with special needs.  It’s part of who I am, and it is inseparable from the rest of my priesthood. Today, St. Andrew’s will begin a new service called Rhythms of Grace (no relation to my last name). This service will reach out and welcome children with intellectual, physical, or behavioral needs, and we will offer them and their families a weekly worship experience that will meet them wherever they are. Each gathering will focus around a Bible story, a creative response, and a Eucharist. We will meet in the parish hall upstairs every Sunday at 2 PM, where families and their children, young or old, can gather.  

The design of this service is that it will be ecumenical, meaning that people of all faith traditions will be welcome. It is an ambitious undertaking for our parish, but it is the right thing to do, for the church and for our community.  

It will take time for this service, like any new service, to grow – but it will.  There are so many families in our neighborhood and city for whom church is impossibility because of the challenges their children face. We are going to welcome them at St. Andrew’s. We will reach out to them with God’s love, and in our wounded and broken ways, show them that we care, and that God loves them. To my knowledge, St. Andrew’s will become the only Episcopal Church in the nation to offer a service like this on a weekly basis.  

So this is new thing for us! And we will grow into it together. We’ll make mistakes, and there will be much for us to learn along the way. All that is to be celebrated and welcomed as we grow together into the people and the church God is calling us to be.  

If you want to help, contact Lisa Puccio, St. Andrew’s Coordinator for Special Needs Worship and Family Faith Formation. Most of all, please hold this ministry in your prayers. It’s time to reach out in hope, as Jesus did that day in the synagogue. We are God’s wounded healers, every single one of us – black, white, gay, straight, rich, poor, disabled, enabled. We have nothing to fear, because Christ has already healed us. AMEN.

January 25, 2015

III Epiphany

Jonah 3: 1-5; Psalm 62: 6-14; 1 Corinthians 7: 29-31, Mark 1: 14-20

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

We are all disciples. The word disciple simply describes a person who is still learning, and that is all of us.  An apostle is something else - an apostle is a teacher. If we are all learners, disciples, we are also all apostles, teachers because we are always teaching others through our actions and our behaviors. We teach and we learn.  

This morning we are introduced to for disciples (students) who would later become apostles (teachers). They are Simon, Andrew (for whom this church is so named), James, and John. They were fishermen in Galilee. Not particularly well-educated or sophisticated, but they were good fishermen.  When Jesus saw them, he called them to be his students, his disciples, and they followed. They left their families, their jobs, and followed Jesus in an act one author calls “drop everything discipleship,” meaning they dropped everything to follow Jesus.

Their devotion to the point of leaving everything behind reminds us that there is a cost to following Jesus. Like the four disciples, we also have to leave things behind in order to follow. And while that might seem scary, it is the most liberating thing we will do.

    In the end, the cost of following Christ for Andrew, Simon, and James was one they paid with their lives. But they are not alone in their sacrifice.  Many of us when we hear the word “sacrifice,” think that it means to give something up.  But that is not the full meaning of the word. The full meaning of the word “sacrifice” comes from a Latin word that means to make sacred or to make holy.  So if we speak of “sacrificing” our lives in order to follow Christ, what we are really saying is that our lives are holy, our lives are sacred, our lives are given meaning because we have become disciples, students, and apostles, teachers.  

This week our nation honored the legacy and sacrifice of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Like the disciples, Martin Luther King heard his Lord calling him to a sacrificial life a holy life that was one of costly and risky discipleship. But looking back on his life, can any of us dare say that there is a better way to live? As the film Selma so appropriately depicts, the cost of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life was an inner wrestling with doubt and struggle.  His life was not easy, and he was not perfect, but because of Gandhi’s influence of non-violent protest, Martin Luther King Jr. forever changed the racial landscape of our nation.  In one sermon delivered at Episcopal National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., King proclaimed that he could see the Promised Land where children of all races played together, and that one day his people would be free at last. A few days after preaching that sermon, King was murdered by an assassin’s bullet in Memphis, Tennessee. The cost of his dream was his life, and in his sacrifice, he followed in the footsteps of Jesus, who did the same.

Because he died before some of us were born, I will offer a more modern example of Mother Teresa, who spent her life caring for sick and dying on the streets of Calcutta, India. While her reputation as a loving and holy woman is undeniable whose life was sacrificially lived, she was also human. She was a real person who struggled with doubt, and who felt at times abandoned by God, as she wrote in letters published after her death. Yet she continued loving, dressing the wounds of the dying, in spite of the fact, that she often wondered if God ever listened, let alone answered her prayers.  In spite of her doubt, she continued in her holy, sacrificial, work. And that is why she is a saint. She heard a call, and through struggle and adversity and in the presence of God’s absence, she endeavored to labor on, just as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Simon, Andrew, James, and John did before her.

The mantle of their discipleship is now upon our shoulders.  We are the disciples and the apostles of this age. The disciples, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mother Teresa – they all had a dream. What is yours? AMEN.

January 18, 2015

Epiphany II-B

1 SAMUEL 3:1-10 ; PSALM 139:1-5, 12-17; 1 CORINTHIANS 6:12-20; JOHN 1:43-51

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THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

Often people ask me to pray for them - people I have never before met and do not know. Some time ago a person asked me to pray and I said, "Certainly, what do you wish to pray about? What is it you wish to talk with God about?" The person excitedly replied, "Oh, YOU are the one who talks to God and God talks to you, I am sure. I can't do that."

I was taken aback by this conversation and wondered if this person never prayed herself, or did she not understand that praying is a means of "talking" with God, that it is a 2-way conversation?

Sometimes in news stories when a person has committed some terrible act, they, being usually somewhat mentally unsound, will say, "God told me to do that." And often the public's reaction is not that God would not ordain such an act, but that God would not talk to an ordinary or crazy person. However, we have much evidence to the contrary in today's Scripture lessons.

At the time of the story of the boy Samuel, we are told that the word of the Lord was rare or precious, meaning Israel had fallen away, again, from reliance upon and worship of God and had stopped following God's commandments. Eli was an old temple priest to whom Hannah, Samuel's mother, had entrusted the boy when he was quite small. She did this to fulfill her promise to God in return for his gift of the child to her when she believed she could never bear a child.

Samuel has been learning, sort of interning, with Eli and serving him. So when in the middle of the night, he hears his name called, he naturally assumes it is Eli calling. "Here I am, says Samuel," but the old priest denies calling and sends Samuel back to bed. This scene is repeated, for God is always determined to have his way, however long it takes.

Finally, the third time, Eli realizes it is God calling to the boy and instructs Samuel to reply, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." LISTENING. And the lord spoke, saying, "See I am about to do something..." It is truly amazing what we can hear when we really listen.

The Gospel lesson is about Jesus calling men. "Follow me" is what we are told he said to Philip. Just that - "Follow me."  And that seems to have been enough for Philip in turn to urge Nathanael to join them.

Now we do not know if Philip had heard about Jesus from Andrew and Peter or if Philip and Nathanael had known him before this. We read only that Philip followed Jesus and then told Nathanael that “we” had found the one promised in the Old Testament. Was the “we” Philip spoke of other people who were following Jesus? We don’t know that either. What we know from this story is that God used one person to relate to another person and spread the news.

Now it seems that Philip listened and responded by following Jesus right away. But when he told Nathanael that this Jesus was from Nazareth, the latter was skeptical - "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" That was a town considered to be unsophisticated, to put it euphemistically, and clearly not a place from which one would expect a learned holy man to emerge. Rather than engage in any debate, long lectures or bouts of persuasion, Philip simply says, "Come and see." That's it - "Come and See."

Nathanael did go and Jesus (God) spoke to Nathanael, letting him know he had seen him, known him, before Philip even called him. Whereupon it is Nathanael who proclaims Jesus is the Son of God.

"But," you may say, "that was the old days when life was simpler and people did not understand reality as we modern people do." And I say, "Although I have lived quite a few years now, I have never read or heard of God having lost his voice.  No Heavenly laryngitis has been reported in modern times."  There was a "God Is Dead" movement in the 60's, but it turned out to be way before its time.

Now these stories are about individual relationships with God. God who longs to be in relationship with us and who has shown through these and other examples that once that happens, blessings too numerous to count fill our lives. The little boy Samuel grew to be a great leader for God's people. Those first apostles not only brought many others to Christ in their lifetimes, but bequeathed to us their faith. We, each one of us, are called to do no less.

The invitation to come and see is to join Jesus as he walks in the footsteps of the poor, weeps with those who are bereaved, heals the sick and stands in solidarity with those who suffer from systems of injustice. By following Jesus, all disciples are asked to look with care into the eyes of the neighbor whom God loves unconditionally.

You may say, "Now wait a minute, Portia, I am an Episcopalian, not an evangelist. I am not Mother Theresa." Or if you are visiting or new,  you might be thinking, "Well, I certainly did not expect a sermon on evangelizing from the frozen chosen Episcopalians."

Hmm. Let's see. Webster's New World Dictionary defines evangelize: to convert to Christianity; to preach the Gospel. And it defines evangelical (adj): of or according to the Gospels or the New Testament; also: of those Protestant churches that emphasize salvation by faith in Jesus. And just in case you still think you are exempt, may I remind you that at the 10:30 service in this very room just last Sunday, all present - many of whom were, I believe, Episcopalians - renewed their baptismal vows. Two of those vows, printed on pg. 305 in the BCP in your pew say,

"Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?"

"Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?"

And the people answered,

"I will with God's help."

The greatest way each of us can love our neighbor is in those words. Being an example. The only way we can exhibit the Christian way is to maintain a relationship with God, to listen for his call, his voice, and then follow. If we do that, we will serve Christ  wherever we are, in all our activities and in our homes and neighborhoods. And if we are doing that, some will say to us, "How do you do that?" "Where do you get your will to persevere?" "How can you be so happy when the world is falling apart?"

The Christian's answer is, "Come and See. Come hear what I hear. I follow Jesus and I invite you to come, too. Come and see what Jesus has done and is doing for you."

This is how it has always been - person to person; Eli to Samuel; Jesus to Philip; Philip to Nathanael. People become Christians because they have seen what the Christian faith has done for those whom they know. The saying passed down from the early years of the church still rings true: “See those Christians, how they love one another.” AMEN

January 11, 2015

First Sunday after the Epiphany

Genesis 1: 1-5; Psalm 29; Acts 19: 1 - 7, Mark 1: 4-11

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

I spent part of this weekend taking down Christmas decorations and removing an extremely dried out Christmas tree from our home. Everything, for the most part, is put back into boxes that will remain in our garage or various closets around the house for the better part of this year until it is time to get them out again in December. The beautiful poinsettias and greenery in the church from last week likewise are gone, signaling that Christmas is now behind. 

As powerful as the story of Jesus' birth is, with the manger in Bethlehem, the shepherds, the wise men, it might seem a bit jarring that just two weeks after Christmas, we are now celebrating Christ's baptism, an event that occurred when he was around thirty years old. Equally jarring today might be the reading from the Gospel according to Mark, which omits the story of Christ's birth altogether, and doesn't begin the story of Jesus' life until his baptism, of which we hear today. 

Many have been perplexed at the idea of Jesus' need for baptism in the first place. Think about it - if Jesus was the perfect Son of God, why would he have need for baptism, which was about purification and the forgiveness of sin? The vast majority of Christians believe that Jesus lived a life that was free of sin, so then why was he baptized? 

This is a very good question, and it has generated a number of interesting and thoughtful answers. The one answer that I relate to most is that the baptism of Jesus wasn't about his need for forgiveness. It was about Epiphany. An epiphany is a big word that simply means a divine revelation in which the nature of God is made clear. The baptism of Jesus is an example of an epiphany, as when Jesus came up from the waters of the Jordan River, Mark says that the heavens were - literally torn apart, and the Spirit of God, like a dove, descended upon Jesus, and the voice of God proclaimed "you are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." Notice that this heavenly act happens outside the city walls of the Holy City Jerusalem, away from the prestigious temple.    

The manifestation of Christ happened not amongst the priests and the overly pious, but rather among everyday people with their own problems. Jesus’ true identity was manifested amongst the impure sinners who had come to a muddy river for cleansing. 

Celtic Christianity acknowledges the reality of "thin spaces" - such places where the separation between earth and heaven seems almost nonexistent. You have probably experienced such a "thin space" in your life. Baptism is such a place. Because at every baptism, the heavens are torn open, and the Spirit of God is uniquely present with us and we are afforded a beautiful opportunity to witness heaven and earth joining together in Baptism. 

It is a thin space where the Spirit of God, like a dove, descends upon us. And with the spirit, there is a voice from heaven saying to you right now: "you are my child, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." 

The God who tears open the heavens, who is unwilling to be confined to sacred spaces stuffed full with religious people, is manifest among us and God is on the loose. With dangerous wonder, look up, and you will see the heavens opened, and God – an Epiphany - in your midst.  

AMEN.

January 4, 2015

2 Christmas

Jeremiah 31: 7-14; Psalm 84; Ephesians 1: 3-6, 15-19a, Matthew 2: 13-15, 19-23

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

A few nights ago, I was sitting in my favorite chair at home reading the newspaper.  I am a luddite – I still prefer a real paper newspaper in my hands.  I love the smell of the paper, seeing the pictures.  It was that time of night when most of the kids were asleep or at least on their way there and one of my children was awake and in the peaceful quietness of my end of day reading, he lobbed this question at me: “Dad, is the devil real?” If he had asked this question in the morning, after I had a couple cups of coffee, and was primed for the day, he maybe would have received a halfway decent answer. But it was night, and I was already thinking about going to sleep myself, so I told him “Great question – let me get back to you!” 

An expectation many people have for someone like me who works in a church is that we would have the “easy” answer for any question dealing with God, eternity, you name it. I am no doctor, but at least for me, the part of my brain that goes immediately to the easy answer, is a dull place. There’s just not much creativity or life there. Easy answers lose their appeal over time, and I know longer have much need, or interest in them, because often they just seem inadequate. I am more interested in the question. Part of the reason I didn’t answer my child’s question immediately, was that I didn’t like the answer that came to my mind at first – the easy answer. Another reason why I punted his question is because – I’ll be honest with you – I am uncomfortable with the idea of evil.  

I am not alone, but in good company on this – as the church often is not very comfortable with it either.  Take today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew. It tells the story of the Holy Family’s hurried departure out of Israel and into Egypt for safety. The Bible tells the whole story, but this morning we get the “edited version” – the version that omits three verses (16,17,and 18) in which something really bad happens.  

Without those three reasons, it seems that the reason why Mary, Joseph and Jesus flee to Egypt is because Herod, the Roman Ruler, wanted to have Jesus imprisoned or possibly killed in order to preserve his own rule.  But while that might be an “easy answer,” it’s not the whole story. The full story is not easy for any of us to hear, and I suspect that is why the church, who decides our readings for today likely omitted these three verses, which I will read now. “When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated and he sent and killed all the children around Bethlehem who were two years old and under.” Not real pleasant, is it? 

This is probably not the best reading for the day we welcome Lisa Puccio, who will be working with our children at St. Andrew’s, but there it is. It’s in the Bible, there’s no ignoring this painful part of the story of Jesus’ birth.  

Most churches that hear this story will not hear that part, the part about Herod’s slaughter of the innocent children. It’s just not a real popular reading for family-friendly churches, and our children’s Christmas Eve pageant tastefully omitted that part Jesus’ birth story as well. Why? What are we afraid of? 

The church seems to be comfortable in discussing evil during Holy Week, in which evil meets its demise in the crucifixion. But the church seems to cower from it at other times, like Christmas, because it just isn’t a palatable concept to entertain amongst all the Christmas trees, gingerbread houses, and gum drops. So we omit it, like the verses in Matthew’s Gospel, we brush it under the carpet, and do our best to ignore it. Except that we can’t really. Because it’s there, and it’s uncomfortable, and in our heart of hearts we know that there is nothing seemingly redemptive about Herod’s violent act. There is no easy answer. Which is exactly why we need to hear the story.  

Those children were not alone in their death – because Jesus who was crucified upon the cross, died with them for them. And in his death, and theirs – they conquered death – stripped it of its power, and death came undone. There’s no easy way to say that, but it’s true.  

What I told my son after reflecting on his question about the reality of the devil is that evil is real. It doesn’t matter really what name you want to attach to it – it is real, and we are all affected by it. But much more important than that is that evil has been conquered, undone, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In God’s own time, all evil will be redeemed. And that is the miracle of Christmas, the miracle of the baby in the manger – is that through his birth all death and all evil ultimately were undone. And that’s an easy answer I have use for. AMEN.

December 28, 2014

1 Christmas

Isaiah 61: 10-62:3; Psalm 147; Galatians 3: 23-25, 4: 4-7; John 1: 1-18

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road, which received the Pulitzer Prize some years ago, tells the story of a father and a son navigating their way through a dystopian American landscape.  We are never told by the narrator what the source of the devastation was, though it was powerful, as America, and the reader assumes the entire world, is reduced to a state that rivals that of the pre-industrial revolution.

The father and the son navigate a bleak, dying, yet dangerous world, with what is left of their belongings, all of which fit into a grocery cart.  In creative juxtaposition to this sinister world in which they live, Cormac McCarthy paints a touching and loving relationship between the boy and his father. The sincere warmth, tenderness, and love with which they care for one another and the father’s fierce devotion and protection of his son often would bring tears to my father.

The book is pregnant with theological allegory – early in the book the Father looks to his son, which is all he has in world in which everything else is seemingly hostile and dying, and says of his son: “If he is not the word of God then God never spoke.” As I read the book, I wondered to myself, was it a story of God the Father and God the Son, walking across America, searching for life, searching for a conscience, searching for hope?  

Of course McCarthy is not the first to describe a son as God’s word. That language is already familiar to us from a source much earlier – the author of the Gospel of John. In this Gospel, Jesus is described to us as the perfect word that God spoke at the very beginning.  Jesus has always been, and will always be. If he is not the word of God, then God never spoke. 

As a father of three sons, I readily admit that these relationships of fathers and sons, whether in the Bible or in novels, have an appreciable effect on me. Remember that early in the Bible, in the book of Genesis, it is written that women and men were created in God’s own image. That means that even though we have parents, and even if we look like our parents, we are not created in their image, we are created in God’s image. We are not products of our parent’s words. All of us were created because God spoke. 

Did you know that you are the word of God? Doesn’t matter who you are, what you wear, what you do – you are God’s creation, God’s word. And if you aren’t the word of God - then God never spoke.   

Today is the fourth day of Christmas. Our calendar tells us that there are eight more days in the Christmas season (which means you all have eight more days of giving presents to Portia). I don’t believe that there are only eight days left. In fact I don’t believe Christmas ever stops, because God never stops proclaiming his Word. That’s you! That’s your child, your grand child, your partner, your wife, your husband. We are all God’s word. 

It is because we are God’s word that we have great responsibility to make sure we incarnate it. Incarnation is a word that simply means to make something abstract, like God, physical, like you and me. That’s what Christmas is about:  proclaiming and incarnating God’s word of love. In this month’s issue of the Voice, you all may have read about a new relationship St. Andrew’s is incarnating with Lord of The Streets, an Episcopal mission to the homeless in our city. They do wonderful work feeding and ministering to the neediest in our community, many of whom have little save for what they are able to push in a shopping cart.  

Our Vestry has approved financial support of Lord of the Streets, but we will be doing more than just writing a check. We will incarnate God’s word by being physically present with them. We will help cook and serve food at their Sunday morning service a few times during the year. A parishioner will serve on their Bishop’s Committee. And we will get to know the people for whom that ministry exists to serve, and we will be blessed by them because we get to get our hands dirty doing the good work of loving our neighbors whose world is often bleak, dark, and dangerous. We will engage this work because the homeless in our city are also the word of God, and God has something to say to us. St. Andrew’s financial support of Lord of the Streets is a Christmas present, not to them, but to us. God’s word is alive, and you are what God is speaking now. Merry Christmas! AMEN.

December 25, 2014

Christmas III

Isaiah 52: 7 - 10; Psalm 98: 1 - 6; Hebrews 1: 1 - 4; John 1: 1 - 14

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THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

The Gospel of John, the prologue to which we just heard, unlike the beautiful prose of Luke which was read last night and is a more familiar Christmas story, does not provide detail of the birth of Jesus, which we celebrate this Christmas Day. Or does it?

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God. Where else have you heard the phrase, “In the beginning?” The very first words of the Old Testament, of the Bible itself, Genesis 1:1. “In the beginning, God.” John sends us back to Genesis to find the beginning of Jesus, who he states was with God and is God. Genesis tells us that as God created all that is, God spoke. God’s word and breath and being entered into everything that was created.  So, if Jesus, the Word of God, WAS at the beginning, what is the significance of the birth of this baby in Bethlehem?

The baby born in Bethlehem was part of a Jewish family and grew into adulthood in a Jewish society. The stories of his family’s ancestors, preserved by both oral tradition and written documents, reflected the struggles of a people of faith, the temptation to trust more in human devices than in God’s providence and the back and forth journey between trust in divine promises and disbelief. One might truthfully say that continues to be our own story and journey today. What is different about the God of the Hebrews and the gods of the many cultures through which they traveled during the Exodus? What about the gods of the Greeks and Romans worshipped at the time of this birth we now celebrate? 

The gods of the Canaanites, of the Fertile Crescent peoples, and those of the later Greeks and Romans were many and each ruled a specific portion or portions of human life and/or the universe. They interacted positively and negatively among themselves, and the perceived results of their actions affected human life. These gods, however, were set apart and did not actually build relationships with humans. These idols were worshipped for what they could DO for humankind, and in fact, their worshippers often sought to control them for purposes of their own well-being. These false gods have no history of loving humans and desiring them no matter what. They certainly did not stoop to toil and suffer as humans do.

Israel’s God claimed sovereignty over everything to do with life and the universe, not just a portion of it. Israel’s God demanded whole-hearted devotion to only the One God. The Israelites were invited to take part with God in unfolding history. They were a covenant community, and their covenant was with the God who created and ruled them. They were in a true relationship with Yahweh, a living god, not just a stone statue or a marble construct. They relied on God’s promise, God’s word.

Now the Word (with a capital letter W) used in John’s Gospel in Greek, is logos, and is more than our English word in meaning. It implies essence – the essential core of a thing. So, beyond the extent to which our human language allows, John is emphasizing that this Essence which came into our world, was indeed the Divine; was God. Then, as now, there was much in the world that was evil and much about the affairs of mankind that were in opposition to the way God intended for his creation to function. In the end, however, neither the Jews nor we ourselves control our God as the neighbors of the Israelites sought to do. 

So in the midst of the darkness that pervaded the world of the Jewish people and others in the year 1 BC, God came to his people as one of them, as life and light for all people. John tells us that the darkness did not overcome this light, although the world had no understanding of who this baby in Bethlehem, this boy interpreting the Holy Scriptures in the temple, this man preaching, teaching and healing throughout the land or even the rabbi hanging on a cross between two thieves was. This child was given by God to all people to reconcile them, us, to the God of the beginning. God himself came to show us that he lives among us. Yet, even before his birth he was rejected, inasmuch as his mother was sent to the barn to give birth.

Thus, as heirs of the Judean tradition, we believe human affairs are not governed by the evil designs of human beings or by economic stresses, but by the overruling providence of God, who works for good in all things. In recent weeks we have witnessed how the absence of this belief creates great fear, even panic, and results in seeming triumph for evil. I speak of course of the recent SONY vs. North Korea misadventure and the overflowing emotions and destructive behavior of the increasing tension between people of different skin color in our society.

Further into the Gospel of John, in the third chapter, we read, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that all who believe in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” The Word, the Love, greater than all possible imagining, came to us this day to claim us, to relate one-on-one and one over all. Even though our own spiritual ancestors rejected him, tortured and killed him, the Word, the Light, was victorious in that we need not dwell and die in our own sinful ways. We need not stay in a state of doubt, fear and disbelief. We have been given the hope and promise of life everlasting by a God whose grace is immeasurable. This is the God who took on our form for his own, who lived an earthly life, who was tortured, died and rose again - for us. There is not enough wrapping paper and ribbon in the world to contain the love of God. And yet, this baby, like all babies, longs to capture our hearts, to dwell in our hearts and to provide for us all that is good for us.

That is why we celebrate his birth this day. We, as Christians, are a covenant people through the covenant of our baptism. Won’t you pray to ask Jesus to be born once more in the manger of your heart, setting it on fire so that you may shine his Light and share his Love, not only this Season, but all the days of your life. Amen

December 24, 2014

Christmas Eve

Isaiah 9: 2-7; Psalm 96; 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-24; John 1: 6-8, 19-28

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

I would first like to welcome all of you here on this holy night.   If you are a member of this parish – welcome.  If you are visiting – welcome.  If you’re not sure why you’re here – welcome. You’re in a good place on a Holy Night. 

I would like to tell you all about a friend of mine named Sam, whom I have been friends with since high school. It’s a bit of a challenge to describe Sam – he’s over six feet tall, and has a big long red beard, and comes decently close to passing for Billy Gibbons, the guitarist in ZZ Top. Sam lives in Austin, but he usually visits Houston over Christmas, and we usually gather annually at the Gingerman Pub – one of my preferred places for theological reflection.  

At one such gathering several years ago, Sam and I talked about children. He and his 
wife do not have children, at least not yet. The stumbling block for them was not all the necessary life changes that happen when you have kids, they seem to be fine with all that. Rather, his uncertainty about having children instead seemed to be about the general state of the world as it is today. And he’s right. The world can be a scary place. There are no guarantees for any of us, so as a father of three boys myself, I can relate to his ambivalence about bringing up children in such a place. 

I do a lot of premarital counseling with couples who are getting married, and one of the things I always make sure we talk about is children and parenting. What I hear from almost all couples I meet with is a variation on the same thing: they want to have children…sometime, but they want to wait until everything is just right – after their school loans are paid off, after the big raise at their job, once they move into the right house. And I humor them and their sincere desire for perfect timing. But in my mind, this is what I’m thinking: “you’re going to get pregnant! While you’re still in graduate school! While you’re living in a tiny house or apartment with no nursery!”  Because there is no such thing as a perfect time for a baby to be born.  

Although most manger scenes we see in front yards, in churches, or on front of Christmas cards depict a calm and tranquil birth – the birth of Jesus was anything but tranquil.  Jesus was not born at some perfect time, but during a challenging time in which Israel was dominated by the Roman Empire and political tension in Jerusalem was like a powder keg ready to explode. Jesus was born into a broken and messy world, a world that refused from the beginning to make room for him.  The world Jesus was born into was a dangerous world, one in which King Herod, a madman and Roman ruler over Judea, upon hearing of Christ’s birth, feared for his tenuous reign.  He ordered that all children under the age of two years old in and around Bethlehem be executed. 

I sometimes wonder why God didn’t choose an easier time, or at least a more peaceful and less violent time, for Christ to be born.  But it seems that even for God, there is no perfect time to be born into this world - except that there is.  The perfect time to be born is the present. It’s right now.  At this exact moment, how many babies are joining the human family across languages and nations?  At this exact moment, how many children are born in perilous situations? Now is the perfect time, even if it does seem dark. 

When the world gets dark, when we get scared, what we want most is not that it would all go away, but rather that we would not be alone in the midst of it. That is what Christmas is all about. Tonight we celebrate the incarnation – the gracious act of God who became a physical, flesh and blood person, like you and me, to walk with us, to lead us out of the darkness and into the light. With Jesus’ birth, God enters the world, as a baby, and in the moment of that birth, the infant God blesses all of creation, even the parts that are broken, dark, or dangerous. 

Episcopal priest and Jungian analyst Pittman McGehee reminds us that etymologically the words “blessing” and “blood” come from the same root. They are part of the same thing, a reminder to us that there is no such thing as blessing without struggle, just as there can be no struggle without blessing. Incarnation comes out of struggle, it is not about perfection. 

Some time ago I listened to an interview with the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet, now in his eighties. The interviewer asked “Your Holiness, you are the thirteenth reincarnation of the Bodhisattva of Compassion – do you have any remembrance of your previous incarnations?” The Dalai Lama replied “I cannot even remember what I had for breakfast this morning!” The point is this – incarnation is not perfection, or perfect timing. It is simply about showing up, and blessing. 

My friend Sam and I talked the other day. When I mentioned our conversation we had 
about children at the Gingerman, he said “We’re not afraid to have kids anymore. We’re ready.” 

While his wife is not pregnant that I know of, I do hope for a phone call sometime in the future from him.  A phone call that would capture the mystery, hope, and anticipation of incarnation in two joyful words: “We’re pregnant!”  Merry Christmas to all of you. AMEN.

December 21, 2014

Advent 4-B

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16; Luke 1:26-38

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THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

I believe most of us were taught forms of obedience as children. We were most likely taught to obey our parents, grandparents and perhaps other adults in our families. Probably we were taught then to obey rules at school, in the classroom, on the playground and when crossing the street. As we grew older, there were many more rules and more people trying to enforce obedience; and there were laws with grave consequences for disobedience. As adolescents perhaps we tested the strength of many rules and the consequences of disobedience. We learned to like the idea of making our own rules for our personal lives and having a feeling, however imaginary, of being in control of ourselves, our lives. Some of us no doubt have been more successful than others at making that premise work.

Obedience is a theme running through today’s readings. King David had a strong desire to build a house for God. The Israelites believed  that God lived in the Ark of the Covenant. David had recently fought battles to rescue the ark and he brought it with great ceremony and celebration to Bethlehem. He then created a very special tent in which God could dwell. David envisioned building a grand temple in which God would live, and he discussed this with the prophet, Nathan. Nathan gave him the “Go ahead.” But then God had other plans.  God popped into Nathan’s dream sleep and directed him to remind David of all God had done for him. Tell David that God will place your offspring on the throne and that person will build a temple for God. Meanwhile, God said he would make a house for David, establishing his line, his throne forever. 

How do you think David felt when he got this news? “No, God doesn’t want you to build a house for him. You have done what he asked and that’s it about the Ark.” David, the great warrior and David, the King of the Israelites, thinking of how God had been faithful to him, fell to his knees in prayer. The next verses of 2 Samuel contain David’s beautiful prayer, his Magnificat, if you will. David surrendered in obedience – obedience of faith. God then, was faithful in fulfilling what he promised David. His descendant, King Solomon, built the first Temple and David's line was established, which generations later resulted in the earthly family of our Lord, Jesus.

Now let us think of Mary, and this astonishing account of the visit paid to her by the angel Gabriel. This young, engaged virgin is told she is about to be pregnant.  Further, she will bear a child who will become someone regarded by God and man as great and important. It seems Mary herself was astonished, for she asked, “How can this be?” She had not been with a man. To be young, unmarried, and with child would be to break all the mores of her culture and in all likelihood end in her being stoned by the men of the village. Did she experience fear? 

Did she want to run and hide? Did Mary want to plead with God? Well, perhaps she did. What would your reaction be? But what we are told is that Mary, like David, praised God and expressed her humility in being chosen by God for this “mission”, this portion of God’s grand plan. She surrendered in obedience – obedience of faith. 

Again, God fulfilled his promise. He removed all the barriers and overcame all the objections Mary might have raised. He protected Mary from the village gossips and those who would stone her, according to Matthew's gospel account, by sending an angel to Joseph to tell him to take Mary as his wife. Joseph, too, obeyed, through faith. Now we, like Joseph and Mary, await this Advent Season for the fulfilling of God's promises to them, and to us, that the Son of God is about to appear and live among us.

Think for a moment where we might be or if we might be had these people ignored God's calling for them and been disobedient. God is faithful. Are we obedient in faith?

I have shared this next story with some of you, and I shall tell it – not in any way to compare with David, Joseph or Mary – but to give a personal example of God interfering in our plans and how obedience can produce an unimaginable ending.

When I became aware that God was calling me to ordained ministry, I was, admittedly, frightened as a first reaction. I went to my knees and literally went limp. Very unlike Mary, my next step was to place all my objections before God; all the reasons why this would not work. I wore myself out in this rant. Next came a nap – 2 hours of very deep sleep. When I awoke, I experienced a strange calm, a strong inner peace, and I remember saying, “God, this is about obedience, isn’t it?” I had no idea how this would happen; where the money for school would come from; how I, who had not studied in a long time could possibly get through the requirements of Ministry School; how on earth could I, at my stage in life, be helpful to God in his church? But this independent, stubborn woman surrendered in praise and humility once that peace filled me. I had no answers as to how it would happen, but God had all the answers. All he asked of me was to follow, obey, have faith and believe. Somehow God let me know Jesus would lead me and the Holy Spirit would guide and protect me through the rough spots.

God has fulfilled his promise to me. I have stumbled over faith stones along the way, but God has not. And I tell you I have never been more fulfilled. The journey from that moment to this one has been totally one of faith. I could not imagine it. I think neither Joseph nor Mary could imagine it. I think David could not imagine what God was talking about.

David Oyelow is a classically trained English actor of Nigerian parents who plays the role of Martin Luther King, Jr. in the movie, Selma, scheduled to open Christmas Day. In a recent interview, Mr. Oyelow was asked how he felt about portraying Dr. King. He answered that it was an awesome thing to do but he truly felt this was a calling. He said, "When God tells you, you start preparing."

What is God telling you? How might you be ignoring him, resisting, making excuses? Know this: God is relentless. God is persistent. God is faithful. God longs for a temple of flesh, a heart filled with love. God knows what path we are intended to walk down, and Jesus will be there to lead and the Holy Spirit to guide and protect us through the rough spots from the moment we say “YES, Lord”. Obedience of faith opens us to receiving God’s grace, which he is so ready to pour upon us. When we say, “Yes” to God, the unimaginable can occur. Incarnation can be realized within us. With Christ’s spirit working within us we become his hands, his feet, his voice, and like Mary his mother, bring Christ into the world for others. Start preparing. Just say, “Yes”, and then watch out. Amen

December 14, 2014

Advent 3

Isaiah 61: 1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126: 1-2, 8-13; 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-24; John 1: 6-8, 19-28

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran Pastor during World War II.  For his involvement in an attempted assassination of Adolf Hitler, Bonhoeffer was sentenced by the Gestapo, and ultimately executed, tragically, only a few days before Germany’s surrender to the Allies. While in prison, Bonhoeffer was courageous, and productive – writing a plethora of letters, theological documents, books, poems, sermons, hymns – many of which were carefully smuggled out of prison, which is why we have them to today.

One of the sermons Bonhoeffer wrote while in prison was on the occasion of his best friend’s wedding. As an engaged man, who sadly never married, Dietrich Bonhoeffer nevertheless understood quite a bit about marriage. Such understanding is evident in his sermon entitled “A Wedding Sermon from a Prison Cell,” written in May of 1943. Bonhoeffer writes: “It is not your love that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that will sustain your love.”  

When I meet with couples prior to their wedding, the line from this sermon often comes to my mind. I typically catch couples a bit off-guard when I tell them that the word “happily ever after” is nowhere found in the Book of Common Prayer Wedding Service. In fact, the word “happy” is never mentioned at all in the prayer book wedding service. That omission is intentional – the prayer book, and the church, are telling us that marriage is not about happiness.  

It is about something greater: joy. 

The prayer book states that marriage is intended by God for mutual joy, not happiness.  

What is the difference between joy and happiness then? Joy is a spiritual practice that comes out of our faith, hope, and our gratitude. Joy comes from God. Joy is what enables a homeless person with next to nothing to say, “I am blessed, because I am alive.” That’s joy – its source is God. Happiness - what makes us happy? What would make me happy today is if the Texans beat the Colts today, but that happiness is fleeting, because as a Houston football fan, I am well acquainted with suffering. Happiness is fleeting – it never lasts, but joy is permanent. 

This past Monday, I went MD Anderson hospital to visit someone, and on my way to the room where the person was, I saw people who were immeasurably sick. They were in clear and obvious pain. Many of them were scared, uncertain if their treatments would succeed. You can read it all over their faces. But there are also patients there whose situation isn’t any better than the rest, and yet there is something different about them. It’s impossible not to notice.  They’re shining. The expression of joy – not happiness – on their faces makes them radiant and beautiful.  

I found myself the recipient of their joy – the person in the wheelchair or bed with joy – they  were ministers of God’s hope to me.  What a blessing it was to be a recipient of their gift – their courage and their joy.  I confess I did not feel worthy to receive it.  

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you,” writes the Apostle Paul in today’s Epistle. We forget these words at our own peril.  In the midst of our harried and busy activity – searching for gifts to makes others happy, we might find ourselves impoverished in the absence of joy. It is no secret that I experienced more real and transcendent joy in MD Anderson, or in reading Dietrich  Bonhoeffer’s letters from prison than I ever do anywhere in the Galleria. 

Today is Gaudete Sunday.  Gaudete is a Latin word meaning “rejoice.” It is the first word of today’s epistle, and we are reminded that no matter what, we have a reason to be joyful - the Messiah, the true king of the world, is to be born. That is the reason for the rose colored  candle on our Advent wreath – it is to remind us that in the midst of darkness, we have a reason to be joyful. And that reason is Jesus Christ. 

Why does it seem that an imprisoned German pastor facing execution and the dying in the hospitals seem to truly understand joy – not the artificial expressions joy we see on forced smiles in Christmas cards, but real, everlasting joy?  What do they have that so many of us seem to lack?  Today is Gaudete.  Rejoice, always. Your joy is God’s gift.  AMEN.

December 7, 2014

Advent 2

Isaiah 40:1-11; Psalm 85: 1-2, 8-13; 2 Peter 3: 8-15a; Mark 1:1-8

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Earlier this week in the country of Kenya, workers at a quarry awoke in the middle of the night by members of a Somalian militant group called al-Shabaab, a group I understand is affiliated with Al Qaeda.  Upon waking up, these individuals were asked to recite lines from the Quran.  If they were not able to do so, they were shot immediately.  Thirty-six people identified as Christians died that night as a result.  Because the border between Kenya and Somalia is so porous, it was easy for the members of al-Shabaab to flee across the border back into Somalia, where they have yet to be caught.  

This is not an indictment of Islam.  In spite of the violence raging across the Arabic world, I still believe Islam is a religion of peace.  Recall that it was Christian nations mostly who fought in the two largest wars the world has seen in the last century.  This event in Kenya, saddened me profoundly, for so many reasons, and was on more reminder to me that in the midst of Advent, we are walking through darkness.  When we are in the dark, it is easy to get lost.  I find myself there often. 

That is why God sends angels – to show us the way out of the darkness. The word “angel” comes from the Greek word “angelos,” which means messenger. An angel is someone who brings an important message to us directly from God. In the Gospel today, the author writes “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” The author of Mark’s Gospel describes an angel, a messenger, who will prepare the way for Christ. In the very next sentence, Mark tells us who this angel is – John the Baptist.  

A rather surprising choice, as John the Baptist was not a person who had much prestige - but people loved listening to him, and thousands went to hear him out in the wilderness. Why? Because their world was dark, too. And John was a light, a messenger, an angel, whose message lifted them to see that the darkness in the world was really just a speck in light.  

Earlier this week I found myself in a spiritually dark place. I wish I could say my thinking was about those thirty-six individuals who died this week accounting for their faith, but I would be lying.  I confess my thoughts were much more self- centered. It was a lonely place to be, frankly, but that is where I was.    

It was in this self-absorbed mindset that I walked outside St. Andrew’s house on a cold day.  The sky was overcast, and even though it was only 2 PM, it felt like it was much later. As I was walking to my car, all of a sudden out of the corner of my eye, I saw an elderly man coming down the street. He was in one of those motorized scooters, and he was going fast.  I was thinking “you better slow down!”  I noticed that as he came nearer to me, I could see that both of his legs were amputated just above the knee.  

And then as the scooter came nearer, I saw the bare skin of one of his legs sticking out from underneath his torso. It was then I realized that this was not just an ordinary man – he was a messenger, he was an angel. His message that he proclaimed – without saying a word - lifted me out of the selfish mire I had created around myself. “Stop thinking about yourself!” was the message I received. Once he was in front of me, I didn’t know what to say, so I said “How are you doing?”  It was a ridiculous thing to say, but what does one say to an angel? “It’s cold out, but I’m great,” he answered, never stopping his scooter. He smiled at me, and then he kept on going down Heights Boulevard. It is true that angels fly because they take themselves lightly. 

The power of John the Baptist is that he was an everyday person, and yet he was a powerful angel. So momentous was his message that I believe it touched personally the lives of those thirty-six men and women. They, too, are angels, by the way, and the message they proclaim is one that will be sung by countless choirs on Christmas Eve: “Angels we have heard on high, singing sweetly through the night, and the mountains in reply echoing their brave delight.”  These thirty-six angels are with God, but the proclamation of the Bible is that angels or messengers are not just part of the host of heaven – they are all around us. Today, this church is full of angels – because God has called you to be his messenger.  

It doesn’t matter how flawed, broken, or imperfect you think you may be. In God’s eyes, that just makes you a more qualified messenger. You are God’s messenger, his angel. What brave delight God sees in you.  Now, venture into the darkness, and bring the light.  AMEN.

November 30, 2014

Advent 1

Isaiah 64: 1-9; Psalm 80: 1-7, 16-18; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13: 24-37

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

“O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence – as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil – to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!” Isaiah, the great prophet in the Hebrew Bible, is speaking out to injustice, imploring God to come down and fix the problems of his day. How many of us have wanted God to do the same? We all yearn for justice, for things to be made right. Whatever your opinion of the outcome of the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Illinois, it is impossible to ignore the very basic fact that racial tensions are alive and well in our country. O that God would tear open the heavens and come down.     

Isaiah is writing from a place of brokenness. He has witnessed injustice and pain and suffering in his own day and he demands an answer from God. In other words, Isaiah is asking God “how can you be God, and allow injustice and suffering to perpetuate its ugly head on the earth?” This is a question many of us are still asking today.  

Our world is broken, and many of us feel so isolated from one another. This is a deep rooted pain and reality that no amount of Black Friday Christmas shopping will soothe. We are in Advent, and even though we are four weeks from Christmas, our readings over the next few weeks remind us that Jesus Christ was not born so that human beings could spend all of December shopping or saying “Merry Christmas.”  Jesus was born to confront the rulers of this world with the love and justice of God – that Jesus, the same Jesus who preached that the poor and marginalized were blessed – that Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords.  

Last week I visited with a young woman who I have known for a long time, but had not really talked to in over twenty years.  We knew each other through the Episcopal Church and Diocesan youth events. She is married now, and she told me about her children, one of whom, is on the Autism spectrum.  

I asked which Episcopal Church they were attending, and she said that they weren’t attending one. I was somewhat surprised by her answer, since when I knew her as a teenager, she was very involved church activities.  Anticipating my question, “why aren’t you attending an Episcopal church?”  she explained that they had been members of an Episcopal Church at one time, but that her family was asked to leave the parish because of their son with Autism. As a father of a child on the Autism spectrum, my heart broke when I heard this.  

I felt like Isaiah, demanding an account from God, “when are you going to tear open the heavens come down, and fix your church?”  And then I saw online a picture of Pope Francis warmly embracing a young child with Autism.  I read the article that accompanied the picture about a conference at the Vatican on the church’s response to Autism.  I loved Pope Francis before, but I love him even more now! Sometimes, the church does get it right. 

In several months, St. Andrew’s will add a new service for families with children that have special needs. We will open our Parish Hall to families of all faith traditions, and it is my hope that this service will offer healing and compassion to those families who were perhaps once told they were not welcome in a church. We will welcome them. 

It is a modest attempt toward justice and representation for all of God’s children. I believe God is calling St. Andrew’s to be a church that welcomes all people.  A church where heaven is broken open, and in that opening – we catch a glimpse of heaven in the eyes of a disabled child, or in meeting a same gendered couple who share a similar story – that they too were no longer welcomed in their parish. In them, and in each other, we witness heaven breaking open. 

After asking God to open the heavens and come down to earth, the next thing Isaiah says is this: “you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down and the mountains quaked at your presence.”  

The mountains are quaking here now. Do you hear them?  Heaven has opened, and Christ is with us. AMEN.

November 16, 2014

Pentecost Proper 28A

Judges 4:1-7; Psalm 123; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Matthew 25:14-30

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THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

We have had our first refreshing splash of winter weather and the brilliant sunny days like the day of our recent bazaar have turned into grayer, cloudier, and shorter days of less sunlight and more darkness. While some people counter the gloom, either intentionally or subconsciously, by beginning to string colorful outdoor lights on their homes and lawns, others tend to retreat evermore toward the center of their nests, bringing out the winter throws and shutting out the world and its cold while they wait for the springtime seed catalogues.

The summer landscaping is dying and there are fewer days ending in 2014 remaining to be lived out until a whole new number appears on our calendars. These all may be reminders of other endings that took place this year, or hopes unrealized, or pounds not yet lost, or friends not yet invited to dinner. Or, perhaps for you, these are signs that start-overs and clean slates are not far away.

First Thessalonians is Paul's earliest letter, written 17 or so years after the Resurrection of Jesus, to the congregation he  established in Thessalonica, the capital of Macedonia, then a Roman province in Northern Greece. In this letter, the apostle is offering encouragement to the congregation, reminding them that they are "Children of Light". Amid strong social pressure from worshippers of such idol gods as Dionysus, the god of wine, and persecution from the Romans, these Christians might easily and understandably succumb to any dark influence and every dark corner. Dionysus' nighttime celebrations were known to be frenzied, drunken orgiastic happenings. Those folks were clearly of the philosophical school of "Live it up tonight for tomorrow you may die."

Paul, however, reminds his beloved people that they and he are followers of Jesus the Christ, and as such, they are to be sober, not moral dullards; they are to be awake and alert since they do not know when the end time, the return of Jesus will occur. And in that day, Christians believed the second coming would be in their lifetime. He tells them to arm themselves with a breastplate of faith and love and for a helmet the hope of salvation so as to withstand the darkness.

We have heard a number of eschatological references in recent weeks: the foolish virgins and the bridegroom; the landowner and the cruel slaves, etc. You may even remember Mr. Harold Camping, president of California's Family Radio, who predicted that three million people would be saved and the rest perish, on May 21, 2011. When that did not happen, the End of the 

World was recalculated for October 21, 2011. Now Jesus, speaking in the Gospels, describes the end times as dark, violent, frightening. And Paul quotes Jesus in this letter, saying that the end will come like a thief in the night. And Jesus also tells us no one knows when that will be, not even the Son knows. That time is known only by God the Father.

What does it mean for you and I to be Children of Light, Children of the Day and not of the Darkness? Well, the first question would be, "What is the Light?" I think the beginning of the Gospel of John answers that quite well. "All things came into being through him (the WORD).....What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it. Jn 1: 3-5.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we walk in this Light. we are his brothers and sisters and heirs of the kingdom of his father. As Paul reminds the 

Thessalonians, we are destined for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. We need to encourage one another to put on the armor of God against all the dark shadows, clouds, pressures, influences and temptations of and in our lives. Our hope of salvation is with Jesus, our Redeemer. The very Light of the World who has overcome the dark death of sin. Who advocates for our forgiveness when we in our weakness step into the shadows and then return repentant.

This is in fact one part of loving one another, this encouraging each other. 

This is body building, being the body of Christ.This is, is it not, why and how we pray for one another and for those we do not know - that we may all be alert to the daily encounters with Christ, walking in the Light, and thus have no fear of the final day - whenever that may be. And walking in the Light is what each of us is called to do outside those doors back there among all those folks outside these walls. I join Paul in saying, "Therefore, encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing." Amen

November 9, 2014

Pentecost – Proper 27 – COMMITMENT SUNDAY

Joshua 24: 1-3a, 14-25; Psalm 78: 1-7; 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18; Matthew 25: 1-13

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

During the time of Jesus, the customs surrounding marriage were different than they are today. There were no wedding coordinators, no destination weddings, no getting married in Las Vegas – it was different back then. One of the ways wedding custom of Israel were different involved the bride and the groom. On the day of the actual wedding, the groom would go with a group of friends to the home of the bride – usually in the evening.  

Once at her parent’s home, the family of the bride would present her to the groom and the bride and groom would go to their new home, and once they arrived there, this would begin a wedding celebration that would last for several days – that’s a lot of wedding cake. 

Young women from the groom’s family would wait in the house at night until the 
wedding party arrived. No one knew when the bride and the groom would return to their new home, so their arrival was never predictable.  

In the story Jesus tells today, ten bridesmaids wait in the home for the groom. It is evening, and each bridesmaid has an oil lamp which they keep lit because it is dark. Five of the bridesmaids came prepared with extra oil for their lamps in case they needed it, while the other five bridesmaids did not bring extra oil. For the five who did not have extra oil for their lamps, when they ran out, they asked the other five who had extra oil if they could borrow some, but they did not have enough to share.  

So the bridesmaids who had no oil left the house in search of more. While they were gone, groom and bride arrived and the party started. When the bridesmaids returned, they found themselves locked out of the party. Because they left to look for more oil, they missed the couple’s return, they missed their big moment, because they were not prepared. 

The message of the story is summed up in the two words of the Boy Scout motto: “Be Prepared.” In the story, Jesus is the bridegroom, and we are the bridesmaids – waiting for them.  

The question pointed to each of us is simple – do we have enough oil in our lamps? Are we prepared? 

Thirteen years ago, St. Andrew’s Episcopal School opened its doors to students for the first time. There was much careful planning that occurred prior to its opening – teachers were hired, rooms were outfitted for Montessori education. Everything was ready, every preparation made, and the school celebrated its opening day…on September 10, 2001. There are some things even the most careful preparation cannot account for.  

We are often unprepared for what comes next in our lives, despite our constant preoccupation with the future. Sometimes a premature ending takes us by surprise. On other occasions, we are unprepared for something to take longer than we had anticipated. We find ourselves thinking we have all the time in the world to achieve an important goal, to discontinue a bad habit or begin a new one, to take care of ourselves, to develop a relationship with God, to read an important book. But how much time do we really have?  

Today is Commitment Sunday at St. Andrew’s. What that means is that in a few moments after the altar is prepared for Eucharist, together we will, one by one, come forward and place our filled out pledge card into this basket in the chancel. If you have already submitted your pledge card, wonderful – please fill out another one - I promise we won’t count your pledge twice – and join us as we present what we have as a gift to God. 

The dollar amount you write on your pledge card is truly the oil for our lamps at St. Andrew’s.  We are prepared to step out in faith, to do the work that God has called us to do. St. Andrew’s is prepared because of each of you – because of your generosity, and your ministry. So - until the bridegroom returns…AMEN.

October 26, 2014

Pentecost – Proper 25

Deuteronomy 34: 1-12; Psalm 90: 1-6, 13-17; I Thessalonians 2: 1-8; Matthew 23: 34-46

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Our reading from Deuteronomy this morning tells the final moments of Moses’ life,where he dies just before the Hebrew people finally enter the land promised to them by God.

The fact that Moses dies before entering the Promised Land is very significant. Here is Moses, the most successful Hebrew leader up to that point – he followed God’s call to liberate the Hebrews from their slavery in Egypt, he spent forty years of his life in the desert with the Hebrew people. That’s almost forty years of non-stop complaining he had to listen to. 

Yet, Moses is not allowed to enter – he can only look at it from a distance atop a mountain. All that he has worked for - everything he has done – and it doesn’t seem that he gets to enjoy the fruit of his labor, by watching his people enter the land God promised them.

Many years ago I watched a group of Tibetan Buddhist monks slowly create intricate designs out of multi-colored sand on the floor of a museum. The patterns were beautiful in their detail. I learned that these circular designs are called mandalas. A week or so later I returned to the museum where I saw the monks working. I was excited to see the final and completed work of art. It would be a magnificent sight, I told myself. When I arrived, the monks, and the mandala they so tirelessly worked on, were gone. 

A curator at the museum explained to me that mandalas were not created to be permanent. After the monks finished, after all those hours of detailed work, the sand thy arranged with such focus, dexterity, and effort, was swept away. “What do you mean they sweep it all away?” I asked. The curator patiently explained that what matters with the mandala is not its beauty, but rather its creation, and release.

We tend to see God’s prevention of Moses’ entering the Promised Land as unfortunate. I have learned to see it differently, as an act of God’s mercy. Moses’ God-given purpose was not to arrive there, it was the journey itself. That was his job. 

Was it all for nothing? All those days in the wilderness, the building of the tabernacle, the great tent that contained the Ark of the Covenant within it, the establishment of the priesthood - - all of this Moses oversaw. Of course it wasn’t. Upon the top of that mountain, near his death, Moses released all he had worked for, all the people, their religion; he released it like the sand of the mandala, into the air. What an act of mercy! Moses wasn’t punished by God – he was freed.

Much of our life is spent in pursuits we will not likely be privileged to see the results of. 

Our lives, even when we reach the end, will still be incomplete. This is not a tragedy. It is holy; indeed it is holy to not see the fruit of our labor. Because then we entrust our work to God in faith, as Moses did. And when we let go of what we do, when we release it, it becomes God’s work – and it is there that new life always begins. AMEN.

October 19, 2014

Pentecost Proper 24

Exodus 33:12-23; Psalm 99; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10; Matthew 22:15-22 

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THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

Today's scripture lessons say a number of things about IMAGE. Image is something most of us care about inone way or another, and it seems we begin caring about image from an early age. Variously, we concern ourselveswith our physical image, our professional image, ourimage in the mirror, the image our house portrays in the neighborhood, the image of our family that our childrenproject, the image our children project of US as parents,and our image as decent folk. In all these examples, theimage of concern is self-image.

Moses, in the reading from Exodus, is seeking an imageof God. Moses has obeyed God's command to lead thepeople out of Egypt and is now needing some assistancein managing them. Recall that earlier in the story of Moses, he encountered an image of God in a burningbush, so perhaps this particular quest on the part of Moses is understandable. Moses and God are engaging in conversation. God: “I know you by name and you havefound favor in my sight.” Now that is an image we would all desire.

Moses essentially is discerning what is it that God wantshim to do next. Although he understands that God hasfound favor with him and that God has promised to bewith him, Moses seeks a SIGN - a physical IMAGE sohe can know without any doubt that God is keeping hisword. But God says, “My presence will go with you and I will give you rest. You cannot see my face, and when I have passed by, I'll take away my hand that has covered you and you shall see my back.” What sort ofimage is that?

Now to the Gospel lesson. When the Pharisees, in yetanother of their attempts to trap Jesus with his ownwords, ask him if it was lawful for them to pay taxesto the emperor. Jesus holds a coin and looks at theimage stamped on it. The inscription on the coin required for the tax reads: Augusti Filius August Pontifex Maximus (“Tiberius Caesar, august son of the divine Augustus, high priest”). The people of Jesus' time were expected to worship the emperor, who held himself to be divine. Ourown coins and paper money contain images - images ofdead presidents and founders of our nation. Today, the people whose images are on our coins are not worshiped, yet in many ways the metal and the paper on which theyappear certainly are worshiped. In answer to the question posed by the Pharisees, Jesus said, “Render unto the emperor that which is theemperor's and render unto God that which is God's.”

So, what kind of image is Jesus portraying or creatingfor us with his response? Some have interpreted thispassage to mean that things spiritual and things earthlyor commonplace are total opposites, one being “good” and the other “bad.” I am inclined to believe there ismore to this image than that.

Recently I was at a gathering where one of the speakerswas head of a management district near here. His jobis to work with businesses in the interest of economicdevelopment in a specific geographic area. His area,as is usually the case, is in transition and is becominggentrified, not unlike the Heights. The speaker citeda number of financial statistics reflecting increasedrecent investment and profits; new businesses created,and influx of certain desirable population segments.Then, he reported on the low rent apartments thathad been demolished and the new mega-mansionsbeing built. Cluttered, dingy little shops had beenrazed and replaced by fancy upscale retail centers.

Much has been accomplished through the efforts ofthis man's organization and he was quite proud of theirachievements. In truth, the area does have an imagemuch more pleasing to the eye than was the case just afew years ago.

Now, his audience was primarily clergy representing anumber of faith groups and religious organizations of longstanding in his area. Their churches must be benefittingfrom an increase in attendance and financial offerings.Yet, immediately the question was raised, "Well, are youaddressing the needs of these displaced people?" Are youincluding plans for low-cost housing and small businessloans or other means for family businesses to continue?Who and where is the voice of those who have been heremany years or who cannot afford to leave?

You see, image can be complex. If the image ofthe neighborhood is gleaming brick and mortar andbeautifully manicured lawns, and yet those who perhapscreated and sustained the neighborhood for many years,who labor and service the neighborhood are forced outand cannot find even modest shelter and are forced tolive in food deserts; if small family businesses are forcedto close because of increased taxation or influx of highend corporate merchants and unemployment figuresrise sharply - then what is the reality behind the image?

Heads or tails? Face of God or God's back?We live in the real, solid, brick and mortar, down anddirty, noisy world that is filled with images of violence,poverty, cruelty, sickness, and evil. That same world isalso filled with images of love and kindness, generosity,and beauty - and it is filled with the Holy Spirit. We maynot see God's face, but we surely see where God hasbeen.Paul was pleased with the image the Thessalonians projected. He wrote, "We know, brothers and sisters,beloved by God, that he has chosen you because theGospel message came not only in word, but in powerand in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. Serve aliving and true God." Paul urged the Thessalonians tobe an example to others of the love of Christ and of thetruth of the Gospel. And he could see that, in spite ofpersecution, they were inspired by the Holy Spirit andknew joy.

We, like Moses and the Thessalonians, we have a Godwho is very much alive and who has promised to bepresent with us always. This God of ours made us in hisimage, then came to us appearing in a human image,to reconcile us to himself when we had repeatedlyand foolishly ignored his love, his promises and hiscommandments. When discouraged, impatient, orstruggling through difficult periods, Moses' people soughta concrete image to follow, and, absent one familiarto them, invented one to follow, to worship and adore.Remember the golden calf. And perhaps that could besaid of modern man as well as of the Hebrew people- perhaps of us. We have silver coin and green paperidols and a plethora of daily reminders and seductivemessages of how these gods will bring us happiness.

Lewis Carroll wrote in Alice in Wonderland:One day Alicecame to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in atree. "Which road do I take?" she asked. "Where do youwant to go?" was his response. "I don't know," Aliceanswered. "Then," said the cat, "it doesn't matter."

As I mentioned, image can be a complicated matter.Living as the image of God we were created to be, neednot be either/or. By God's grace we each have gifts;some of wealth, some of time, others of various talents,and knowledge. Paul exhorts us to be examples toothers: examples of this living God who favors us andknows our names.

But How?

Just like Moses, we must enter into conversation withGod and discern the path/road God has prepared for us. Ifirmly believe God equips the willing. I firmly believe theHoly Spirit will, if asked, guide each and every one of usto the way we are to use our images of dead presidentsand all our other gifts and sometime idols, not only forour own well-being, but also for the furtherance of thekingdom of our living God. We can use them to be thevoice of those who have no voice and to support theministries of those who walk among the least of them.

So - Where do you want to go? What example, whatimage of God do people see when they see you? Areyou one who calls on the Lord, acts with steadfast beliefthat your prayers will be answered - in God's time and inGod's mercy and grace? What kind of example are we?What image are we projecting?

October 12, 2014

Pentecost – Proper 23

Exodus 32: 1-14; Psalm 106: 1-6, 19-23; Philippians 4: 1-9; Matthew 22: 1-14

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

About a week and a half ago, I had the honor of visiting the Heights Interfaith Food Pantry. Some of you all have volunteered your time there, and if you have know what a unique place it is. My typical experience of food pantries is that they are not places I would usually describe with words like “joyful,” “fun” or “happy.”

What I am accustomed to seeing at food pantries are clients quickly handed food by hurried volunteers. Rarely have I seen clients asked questions like "would you prefer green beans or carrots? Would you like another loaf of bread?" It's more like "Here's your food. Next."

What I saw walking into the Heights food pantry was completely different. There was Elizabeth McCormick and Ed Amash with these giant smiles on their faces compassionately helping clients select the food they wanted. There was our deacon, Portia Sweet, carefully helping a woman select her food from the counters. "Would you like another beef stew, or how about some fresh eggs?" Portia gently said.

I was floored. I had never seen people this kind, this loving, working in a church food pantry before. You just don’t see that. And of course it was obvious why Elizabeth, Ed, Portia, and others volunteering that morning had such giant smiles on their faces - they were serving God. And serving God always puts a smile on your face.

Today we hear about two servants, both women, who travelled with the apostle Paul. Their names were Euoidia and Synteche, to which the name "Portia" just seems like it fits right in. They, like Paul, were ministers. They worked hard, they served God, and I believe (though scripture does not say) that they conducted their ministry with a smile on their face. 

Paul commands the people of Phillipi to receive Euoidia and Synteche and take care of them, as they have proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ alongside Paul. These two women, with nearly unpronounceable names, are unsung heroes in the history of our church. Their names are never mentioned with the frequency of Paul's, but it is clear that Paul thought of them as equals.

Today we honor all the servants of God - whether they are named Euodia, Synteche, Portia, Ed, or Elizabeth. People who serve God are the happiest, most free people I know. And that is the paradox of serving God - obedience to God doesn't stifle or restrain us. It frees us unlike anything else in the world. 

There was a jr/sr high confirmation retreat this weekend at the church, led by two of our parishioners - Biz Loeschmann, and Kevin Robertson. They gave up their weekend, time with their families, to share the Gospel with four of our youth. Taylor, Claire, Austin, and Kayla had fun, helped out on the work day yesterday, and learned to pray in different, cool ways through a prayer lab. Last weekend we welcomed over two hundred people to our blessing of the animals. 

Right now the men of St. Andrew’s are smoking chickens on our smoker for our parish lunch today. What wonderful ministry is happening inside, and outside our church walls. Serving God is the most perfect freedom there is. How blessed we are to have so many opportunities to do so. AMEN.

October 5, 2014

Pentecost – Proper 22

Exodus 20: 1-4, 7-9, 12-20; Psalm 19; Philippians 3: 4b - 14; Matthew 21: 33-46

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

In the Bible, a vineyard was a common image used to describe the people of Israel. That’s how Jesus uses it in the story he tells today. During the time of Jesus, vineyards were fairly abundant, dotting the countryside with some frequency. Most of the vineyards in Jesus’ day were owned by foreign landowners, who entrusted the day to day operations of the vineyard to other employers, or tenants, as Jesus says in the parable.

Tenant farmers rented the vineyards from the foreign landowners, and they worked long hours for long seasons, returning the majority of their profits over to the absentee landowner. The tenant farmers were barely able to put food on the table, while the wealthy landowners received more money than they needed. 

So how do you think the religious and civil authorities reacted to Jesus’ story where the mistreated tenant farmers got fed up with the situation and took matters into their own hands? Imagine how shocked those who heard this parable were when Jesus used the image of the hated absentee-landowner as an image for God?

In the story he tells, the vineyard represents the people of Israel, the absentee landowner we know already is God, and the slaves sent to bring the owner produce from the vineyard are the historic prophets - people like Isaiah and Jeremiah who endured insult, imprisonment, beating, and even death to bring God’s message to Israel. And the son of the landowner, is of course, the Son of God – Jesus.

The point of the story is simple – to each of us a vineyard is given, and God entrusts its care to us. The vineyards in our life are all different – your vineyard might be your family, it might be this church, or it might be St. Andrew’s School. How well do we take care of the vineyards God has entrusted us with?

Today marks two important occasions at St. Andrew’s. First, we are celebrating Episcopal School Sunday. St. Andrew’s Episcopal School started over thirteen years ago and currently has fifty-three enrolled students in three classes: Toddler 1, Toddler 2, and Early Childhood. According to our Head of School (and member of St. Andrew’s), Nancy Simpson, there are fifty five children currently on our wait list. So, there is clearly room for the school to grow. In your Service Bulletin there is an insert that provides information about Episcopal Schools, and on the back of your service bulletin, you will find printed the names of all staff and members of the School Board of Trustees.

The second occasion we are marking today is the beginning of our annual stewardship campaign. Today, and continuing for the next five weeks, you will hear stories from parishioners who sit in the pews next to you. They will share with you what St. Andrew’s means to them, how the ministries of this parish have drawn them closer to God. As you hear their stories, I hope you will see that financial stewardship at this church is all about gratitude. My hope is that you will see financial stewardship as a way of caring for this vineyard God has so 

generously given us. How blessed we all are! AMEN.

September 28, 2014

Pentecost – Proper 21

Exodus 17: 1-7; Psalm 78: 1-4, 12-16; Philippians 2: 1-13; Matthew 21: 23-32

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THE REV. JAMES M.L. GRACE

In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Last weekend I met with two other friends of mine from seminary: one of them, Brad, isa priest in Texas, and Carey, a priest in Arkansas. We spent three years together in seminary, and over the course of those years we got to know each other fairly well – I ended up as a groomsman in both of their weddings. 

Many years have passed since we had all been together, so the experience of a weekend together was a sort of homecoming. We met for a self-led retreat in Brenham, and over the course of two days, we each took time to do something awkward for many men (myself included): we candidly shared what was going on in our lives. It made sense for us to do this as we all have much in common: we are all rectors in Episcopal churches, we are all married, we all have young children, our wives are all much smarter than we are, you get the idea.

We spent the majority of time baring our fragile and broken selves to one another. That’s not entirely true - we grilled steaks, we drank wine, we woke up the next morning with a subtle ache in our head reminding us of just how much wine we drank the night before. In our serious conversations, we discussed our shortcomings, and our failures. And it was for me an oasis in the desert – a refuge, one of those rare places in the world where refreshment flows from the mutual wounds of broken people. 

I am fond of such moments, rare as they are, for in their holiness, they reorient me toward what is most important – God. These moments tend to be unexpected, and they occur in unusual places.

The people of Israel, travelling in the wilderness of the Sinai desert, far from Brenham, seemed to have such an experience of the holy. Released from their slavery in Egypt, where they at least were assured enough to eat and drink, the Hebrew people now found themselves with little to eat, and worse, nothing to drink. And so they complained to Moses, their leader: “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” And Moses threw his arms up and said “I don’t know – it seemed like a great idea at the time!” That’s not what he really said. Rather, Moses put the question to God: “What do I do?”

And God’s answer was simple: “Moses, take the staff you used to strike the Nile and go to the rock at Horeb, strike the rock, and water will come out.” We all know what happened. Moses took his staff, he struck the rock, and water, enough for all the Hebrew people to drink, flowed out from it. It was a holy moment – an experience of God in an unusual way and in a strange place. 

It was a moment where the water of life poured out from a broken place. The story of the Hebrew’s journey through the Sinai to the Promised Land is the story of every church in history. Like the Hebrew people, every church, including St. Andrew’s, is on a journey through the wilderness. Though it might seem a little scary, the wilderness is where God calls us – it is where we meet God, on our way to the land of promise. Where are we on the journey? What is God calling us to do? 

A wise pastor once said that every church has two basic committees: a “Back to Egypt” committee that always wants to go back to the way things were. This kind of committee is governed by fear and anxiety – they are afraid of what continuing on the journey might bring, and so they cling to the past. The second committee in every church this pastor suggests is an “into the Promised Land” committee – they are excited to step out in hope and faith to see what exciting places God is leading them. Which committee do you serve? As a church, I believe St. Andrew’s has embarked on a journey of faith and hope toward the future. 

We are in the wilderness, but we are here by our choosing, because we know God is present, and it’s going to be okay. Because when God is present, rocks break open and yield the water of salvation to all who thirst. When God is present, there is bread enough for all to receive. We choose hope over fear, we are bearers of faith instead of anxiety. 

The last night of our retreat, we shared a bottle of wine called “Funhouse,” perhaps selected to remind us either of the parishes we served or the homes we lived in. Regardless, it was our selected wine at an impromptu Eucharist following dinner, where we gave thanks for the ordinary miracles we perceived in our lives: families, you all, and that rock, which when tapped, water in abundance always flows. AMEN.

September 21, 2014

Pentecost - Proper 20 A

Jonah 3:10-4:11; Philippians 1:21-27; Matthew 20:1-16; Psalm 145 

THE REV. PORTIA SWEET

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As I see it now, life really is a journey, and I know that phrase has become almost cliché. But for me it is true. We are physically born into a strange environment, explore our physical parts then that small landscape immediately adjacent to us. At some point we become self-aware, then more and more we explore and then exert our strengths - physical and intellectual. Most of us become to one degree or another, rather impressed with what we can do and we begin to enjoy the feeling of autonomy. Even at two years of age, we learn that if we say NO often enough and loud enough, the big people will give in.

Life's journey takes us across mountains and through valleys and we find, if we mature and don't stagnate at a very young emotional age, that much of how we have perceived life and the world is illusory. It is about here on the trail that we begin to whine. "Why me?" "That's not fair." "God, could you cut me some slack?" And it is also about here that many of our prayers amount to requests for handouts. "God, I want you to do this" "God, would you just let me pass this test, or get this job, etc etc. And If the request is not met and in our time frame, what do we do? We doubt, we complain, we become grumpy cats.

Today's readings include several examples of Grumpy Cats - you know, that famous or infamous sour-faced feline on You-Tube, Facebook and many merchandise. The Israelites were on a journey; they have been delivered out of slavery in Egypt. God even parted the waters for them to escape their enemy. They were in the desert and complained bitterly to Moses that they were starving. Being free of their cruel slave masters was not enough, and note that we don't seem to have a story about the fact that they were grateful for that. 

Moses appealed to God on their behalf, and God, loving these grumpy cats of his so much, provided both meat and bread to assuage their hunger. Moses, throughout this journey, attempts to bring the Israelites into more intimate and meaningful relationship with God. As you will see in future installments of this saga, these insatiable human beings, like us, were not through with their complaining.Paul's letter to the Philippians was written while he was in prison, about 61-63 AD. He was allowed visits with Timothy, with whom he wrote this epistle. 

The Philippians were experiencing differences of opinion and quarreling among themselves about the "Proper" or "True" way to believe and proclaim Christ. Paul loved the people of the church in Philippi very, very much and even though he himself was suffering, he earnestly desired that they be about fruitful labor and about becoming more at one with Christ.

 Christians in those first few centuries were widely and severely persecuted, and imprisonment carried the distinct probability of impending death. Paul urges his beloved friends to forgo their petty squabbles over inconsequential matters, focus on living the Christ life, including suffering with and for Christ, and assuring them that he, too, is and has suffered in similar ways. 

Perhaps he was literally telling them to put on their big Philippian pantaloons and Come to Jesus, who, he reminds them has suffered for them as well.Matthew brings us even more grumpy cats in today's Gospel reading. Jesus tells a story about a wealthy landowner and the laborers he hired to work his land. Often in Jesus' parables, the landowner or head of the household or king is a character he uses to tell us how God acts. In this instance, laborers are hired in the morning, more at noon, others in mid-afternoon, and finally some who are still waiting for a job are hired near day's end.

When it is time to receive their wages, they are each given a full day's wage. Oh, how the men who worked all day howled about the unfairness of that! What would today's labor union stewards make of that? My, My. Now this story is placed in Matthew near the one in which the disciples whine that they have left everything to follow Jesus, and complain that they have little to show for it all.

There is also the story Jesus tells elsewhere in which he assures us the first will be last and the last first. In all of these examples, Jesus is attempting to let us know who and how God is, how God's unlimited grace is poured out as God himself sees fit, and not by any rules of engagement that man has drawn up. You see, the Landowner said two important things in response to the complainants. First, that he is doing the men no wrong, and he calls them, "Friend". Second, that they agreed to work for a day's wage, and they have been paid according to the agreement. What is his he may do with as he wishes.

I am reminded in this that ultimately Jesus called his disciples, "friend". I also recall that Jesus is the NEW contract, the new covenant. That it is this contract, if you will, that we enter into when we are baptized - whether as infants, young adults, mid life or on our deathbeds in old age.

This Sunday is Invitation Sunday in the Episcopal Church. For any who may be in church or with us for the first time, may I say "Welcome", and assure you that this Gospel we preach here is a message of grace to those who come late as well as to those who come early. Sitting in that pew for 20 years does not make it yours. The Jewish people had waited long for the Messiah and had certain ideas about what that savior would do and how he would save them, and that they would be his privileged class. Well, the people that Jesus, the disciples and Paul actually reached out to were very different yet were beloved. Think Beatitudes. And those who thought they were in charge of God instead of the other way around, complained and plotted against the gift they were sent. Even if we do everything that Paul preaches by way of living a Christ life, doing good works, bearing good fruits from our labors - all that - even then we can do nothing to earn God's Grace. That is the message of the Cross, my friends. 

It is God's and, make no mistake, God is in charge. He has created us. He has created the road on which we travel. He bides his time while we whine, while we wail and complain and put on our Grumpy cat masks. We are all late-comers , all on a journey, all late bloomers spiritually. And by the grace of God, through our risen Lord who came and lived as one of us, who died and rose again to reconcile us to the Father, we are recipients of more abundance than any desert or prison could ever hold. We are fed, we are saved from eternal death. We grumpy cats are loved. Amen