Sunday, March 17, 2024

Drawing All People

Fifth Sunday in Lent (Year B)

John 12.20-33

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook Page (beginning at 21:55)

 

Throughout our Lenten journey, we have been traveling with Jesus as he makes his way toward Jerusalem and to his Passion. At this point in the journey—just one week before Palm Sunday and the start of Holy Week—Jerusalem is on the horizon. Although in a bit of scriptural disconnect, Jesus is a week ahead of us. Our Gospel reading for today takes place immediately after Jesus has made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem—what we now refer to as Palm Sunday. As we join the scene, there is a flurry of activity on multiple fronts—much of it behind the scenes of the Gospel passage.

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Sunday, March 10, 2024

God Loved the World in This Way

Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year B)

Numbers 21.4-9; John 3.14-21

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 21:50)

 

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that every one who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” Undeniably one of the most well-known passages from all of scripture, at least in our own age. The mere mention of its citation—John 3.16—calling to mind the entirety of the passage for Christians and non-Christians alike. The passage that Martin Luther called “the gospel in miniature”—a summary of the entirety of the gospel in one verse. And yet, we actually got it wrong.

 

Now, I certainly don’t mean to imply that this passage is incorrect. God did indeed love the world. God did indeed give his only Son as a means of salvation. God did indeed give his only Son so that we might have eternal life. All that is most certainly true. It’s just not the entire truth. So, this passage is not so much wrong as it is incomplete. Partly because it is taken out of context—which I will get to in due course. And partly because many, upon hearing this verse, focus on and emphasize one part of the verse: the last phrase, which reads, “so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” For many, this has become a statement of exclusivity as opposed to inclusivity. In the mouths of many, this verse becomes more of a warning than an invitation. If you do not believe as I do, you will not be saved, you will not attain eternal life.

 

As we will see when we take a deeper dive into the context of Jesus’ statement, all this will be redeemed.

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Sunday, March 03, 2024

Tearing Down Barriers

Third Sunday in Lent (Year B)

Exodus 20.1-17; John 2.13-22

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 23:40)

 

Our readings for today, particularly our Old Testament reading from Exodus and our Gospel reading from John, present the full arc of our relationship with God, particularly as represented in and manifest through religious institutions. This arc does not just represent the history of where we have been in our lives of faith and how our faith has been formed and influenced—maybe even manipulated—by the religious institution writ large. These stories represent and—with a little digging—reveal the arc of our faith development past, present, and future.

 

For purposes of exploring this arc, we will use the Gospel as the present moment—the moment which our faith history has been building toward, and the moment which dictates where we go from here, individually and as the people of God. For it is what happens here in the Temple in Jerusalem in roughly the year 27 that forever changes how God relates to his people and to how we relate to our God.

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Sunday, February 25, 2024

Take Up Your Cross

Second Sunday in Lent (Year B)

Mark 8.31-38

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 24:10)

 

“If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” Excuse me? You want me to . . . to do what?

 

These words of Jesus to his disciples, and to the entire assembled crowd, are admittedly a bit startling. Particularly to a group of Jews in first century Palestine. The image of taking up a cross would have naturally brought to mind crucifixion. The preferred form of torture and execution for the occupying Roman forces. Something Jesus’ audience rightly feared. And while we may not live in fear of the prospect of crucifixion in our own time, we still cringe—even if only slightly—at the prospect of having to 1) deny ourselves, and 2) to take up our cross. That does not sound like something any of us would willingly do. And yet, in this Lenten season, and indeed in our ongoing lives of faith, taking up our cross is precisely what we should be doing.

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Sunday, February 18, 2024

Lenten Renewal

First Sunday in Lent

Genesis 9.8-17; Mark 1.9-15

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 30:00)

 

With a smudge of ashes on our foreheads and the recitation of a litany for penitence, we began our Lenten journey this past Wednesday. As noted in the Invitation to the Observance of a Holy Lent, by these acts, “the whole congregation was put in mind of the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith.” While there are many images from scripture and the unique prayers for Ash Wednesday that help frame what Lent is about, these words, as well as any, serve as a statement of purpose for our annual commemoration of Lent.

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Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Our Valentine Gift to God

Ash Wednesday

Matthew 6.1-6, 16-21

St. Thomas of Canterbury, Long Beach (8:00 AM) and 

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach (7:00 PM)

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 18:20)

 

Because of the way that the date for Ash Wednesday is calculated (determined by the variable date of Easter), there are 36 possible dates for Ash Wednesday—February 4th through March 10th. With that many possible dates, it’s pretty rare that Ash Wednesday falls on any given date, let alone on February 14th—Valentine’s Day. In fact, it only happened three times during the 20th century; and will only happen three times this century. It already happened once in 2018; it is happening this year; and will happen again in 2029.

 

This confluence of Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day creates a bit of a disconnect as we try to hold the two in our hearts and minds; as some try to find a place for both in their lives. Ash Wednesday being a religious commemoration focused on the sorrow at our sinfulness, with the need for penance. Valentine’s Day being a secular celebration focused on the joys of love. The practices associated with Ash Wednesday (and the Lenten season that follows) being almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. The practices associated with Valentine’s Day being the giving of flowers, cards, and chocolates. Ash Wednesday being viewed as a time of abstinence in many forms, and Valentine’s Day being associated with extravagance in many forms.

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Sunday, February 11, 2024

The Transfiguration Transition

Last Sunday after the Epiphany (Year B)

Mark 9.2-9

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 14:10)

 

Here we are at what is designated as “the Last Sunday after the Epiphany.” A name that I have always thought rather odd. Probably because I am one of those people who delights in picking apart grammatical oddities and errors—a result of having prepared technical reports for a living in my previous career, plus having a sister who was an English major in college. I find the designation of this day as the Last Sunday after the Epiphany odd because, at least to me, it sounds as if this is the last Sunday ever. That there should be no more Sundays after this. Which obviously is not the case. Unless the world happens to end sometime between now and next Saturday. No, we know there are more Sundays to follow. Now, I get why this Sunday is named as it is, due to the variable number of potential Sundays in the season after Epiphany, which can be anywhere from four to nine, depending on when Easter falls. So, alas, we are stuck with this seemingly odd designation.

 

But in some ways, it is the last. As we move from the last Sunday after the feast of the Epiphany and prepare for the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday, there is a profound shift in the tone of what we have experienced over the last six weeks, to what we will experience over the next six weeks. That this is a point of transition—a pivot point, if you will—in our liturgical calendar to be sure, but also in our faith journey.

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Sunday, February 04, 2024

Model for Ministry

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year B)

Mark 1.29-39

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 23:55)

 

Throughout our Epiphanytide journey, we have focused on the various ways that Jesus is manifest as the Son of God. This is primarily accomplished through the actions at the beginning of his public ministry. We first looked at the calling of his disciples to be partners in ministry, and those who will be charged with taking up this ministry after his death and resurrection. Exploring two accounts of this calling, each of which revealed something of who Jesus is as the Son of God, but also what it means to be a follower of Christ. And then last week, exploring Jesus’ first day on the job—the first day of his public ministry. Again, these actions of teaching, healing, and casting out demons in the synagogue providing greater insight into who Jesus is as the Son of God; to what his public ministry will be about, and what it means for us to be his companions in his ministry. In today’s Gospel reading, we continue with Jesus’ first day of public ministry, with what happens after the events at the synagogue. Here again, what we see continues to provide glimpses into how Jesus will more fully be revealed as the Son of God.

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Sunday, January 28, 2024

Casting Out Demons

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year B)

Mark 1.21-28

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 22:45)

 

As we’ve journeyed thus far through Epiphanytide, we have witnessed—and will continue to witness—the progression of and the variety of ways in which, Jesus has been revealed to us as the Son of God. That is what the feast of the Epiphany and the season that follows is about. Witnessing the ways in which Jesus is revealed to be the Son of God and, in turn, exploring what that means for us in our lives of faith. Exploring how God and Christ are manifest, are shown forth, in our lives as those who are the Body of Christ in the world.

 

Thus far, we have witnessed Jesus’ baptism, where God explicitly states and confirms who Jesus is: “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased” (Mk 1.11). Opening the way for exploration of how we, through our own baptisms, are similarly brought into the family of God as his beloved children. We have then seen over the last two weeks how Jesus called his disciples to follow him in preparation for his public ministry. In so doing, exploring how we, too, are called by Jesus to follow him in our own unique ministries. Today we witness the very beginning of Jesus’ public ministry—his first public act of ministry. Setting the tone for the shape and trajectory of Jesus’ life and ministry over the next three years. In the process, beginning to get an idea of the shape of our own ministries, as the Church and as individuals. And it all begins with demons.

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Sunday, January 21, 2024

Responding to God’s Call Part 2: Discernment

Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Year B)

Jonah 3.1-5, 10; Mark 1.14-20

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 19:05)

 

As I noted in my sermon last week, the key Scripture readings for both last Sunday and today focus on how God and Christ reveal themselves to us through “call narratives.” Stories that focus on someone being invited or called into God’s service. In actuality, when you go back to the Sunday before last, to the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, the Gospel for that Sunday is also essentially a call narrative. Although, rather than focus on our response to call, it is really the story of Jesus’ de facto call to public ministry—the event that began his public ministry. So, we really have the first three Sundays in the season after Epiphany in which the focus is on call to ministry. Sending a pretty clear message that one of the key ways that God is manifest in Christ, that God is manifest in our own lives, is through being called into his service.

 

As you may recall, our readings for last Sunday contained essential three call narratives. The call of Samuel in our Old Testament reading and the calls of Philip and Nathanael in our Gospel reading. From these, we were able to glean some key characteristics of how God calls and how we respond. In terms of how God calls, we saw that God is, if anything, persistent; as he was with Samuel and Nathanael. We also saw that the way we are called into God’s service is as unique as we are. God meets us where we are in our own lives. He came to Samuel in the middle of the night in the tabernacle. Jesus ran into Philip on the road. God worked through Philip to invite Nathanael. And then we saw that there are differences in how individuals respond. Some are able to respond immediately, as did Samuel and Philip. And some need a little time or information, as did Nathanael.

 

This week in our Old Testament and Gospel readings we have more call narratives. While it may be harder to pin down a central theme for these narratives, one that could be made has more to do with the inner machinations that occur within the individual from the time they receive a call from God to the time they respond—be that responding “yes” or “no.” What we today refer to as the discernment process—exploring all the facets of the call as related to our own lives, and only then making an informed decision as to how to respond. But to get there, we need to dig a little more into the stories, as the discernment is not readily apparent on first reading. And as with last week, the two call narratives—the call of Jonah in our Old Testament reading and the call of Simon Peter, Andrew, James, and John in our Gospel reading—really couldn’t be more opposite.

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