Freedom in Discipleship

Third Sunday after Pentecost – Proper 8 (Year C)

1 Kings 19.15-16, 19-21; Galatians 5.1, 13-25; Luke 9.51-62

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

As we begin this summer season, many of us are probably looking forward to plans for summer vacation. We all know how much work goes into planning and preparing for travel. There is always so much to do. Making travel arrangements, planning activities, arranging for pet sitters, stopping the paper and the mail delivery, making sure that bills will be covered during our absence. The to do list seems endless. Too much to do and not enough time to get it all done before the vacation begins.

There is something of that going on in today’s Gospel reading. Only, it is not a summer vacation Jesus is embarking on. What we just heard is the beginning of a new section in Luke’s Gospel. Sometimes referred to as the “travel narrative,” this is the longest section of Luke’s Gospel, spanning ten chapters. It is at this point that Jesus “sets his face toward Jerusalem,” where he will be “taken up.” Where he will be arrested, put on trial, tortured, and executed. This “travel narrative” is characterized by a strong sense of purpose and urgency. Not just the sense of purpose and the urgency of Jesus needing to get to Jerusalem to fulfil his mission and his destiny. There is also a strong sense of purpose and urgency because there is so much to be done in Jesus’ short time left. Not the least of which is intensive teaching and training of his disciples. Preparing them for the real work that will begin after he is gone. Jesus is unwavering in his commitment to his mission to go to Jerusalem, and he calls his disciples to a similar unwavering commitment to their mission—to continue the ministry he began.

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Inner Demons

Second Sunday after Pentecost – Proper 7 (Year C)

Luke 8.26-39

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Anyone here possessed by a demon? Given our Gospel reading for today, I kind of had to ask.

When I prepare sermons, I look at what is happening in the readings and try to determine what it mean for us today, 2,000 years later and half a world away. Often times, what we see happening or hear said in a particular reading may not make a whole lot of sense to our 21^st century American way of thinking. In which case, we sometimes need to take a step back and look at how what happens would have been perceived in Jesus’ time. To consider the historical, cultural, or religious context surrounding the readings. Based on a first century Middle Eastern understanding of the message being conveyed, I then seek to translate the message in such a way that it makes sense to us. Based on that, we can then explore what the central message means for us today. This is not always a linear process, sometime looping back on itself or heading off on tangents.

Today’s Gospel reading was a bit of a challenge. I mean, demons? Really? What do I do with that? What does demon possession have to do with us? I mean, that I know of, I don’t have any parishioners who are possessed by demons. Let alone a legion of demons. That I know of, none of my parishioners have to be chained up by their loved ones to prevent them from hurting others or themselves. That I know of, none of my parishioners run around cemeteries naked. But hey, what you do on your own time is your business. Who am I to judge?

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The Trinity is Love

Trinity Sunday (Year C)

Romans 5.1-5; John 16.12-15

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Today, Trinity Sunday, is the only Sunday in the entire year dedicated to a doctrine of the Church. This is because the Trinity is so central to our religion. Despite its centrality, it also happens to be one of the most difficult things to comprehend about Christianity. According to this doctrine, we believe in one God who is comprised of what theologians oh so confusingly refer to as three “persons”—a rather unfortunate and misleading label. These “persons” are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The difficulty is that there is little explanation of the Trinity in the Bible. There are texts about each of the “persons” individually. And there are also references to the interrelationship between various “persons” of the Trinity,” such as we hear in our readings today from Romans and the Gospel according to John. But there is little in the Bible to really bring it all together.

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Fire and Wind

Day of Pentecost (Year C)

Acts 2.1-21; Romans 8.14-17

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

“And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. [and] All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2.2-4).

Here in California, particularly in Southern California, we are all too familiar with the power of the two “elements” reported in the account of the first Pentecost in our reading from Acts: fire and wind. Every year we face the threat of wildfires, particularly in the more wilderness areas of our state, with each year seeming to be worse than the previous year. Last year was no exception, with 2018 seeing the worst destruction from wildfires in history, with 1.89 million acres destroyed, along with thousands of structures, and sadly, the loss of numerous lives. And every year we face the threat of incredibly strong Santa Ana winds, downing trees and powerlines, causing more destruction.

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In Search of Unity

Seventh Sunday of Easter (Year C)

John 17.20-26

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Today’s Gospel is the final few verses of what is referred to as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer.” It is an extended prayer that Jesus prays on what we now know as Maundy Thursday, right before he goes to the Garden of Gethsemane. In the part that we heard to today, Jesus prays, “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one” (Jn 17.20-21a). And he goes on to reiterate the most important aspect of his prayer: “that they may be one, as we are one” (v 22). Not just one, but “that they may become completely one” (v 23). What Jesus is talking about here is unity. That the disciples and those who follow after them—that would be us—are in unity. Yeah, good luck with that.

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