"Lord, It Is Good For Us To Be Here"

Last Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)

Matthew 17.1-9

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

Today we stand at a critical turning point, in more ways than one. As we metaphorically stand on the mountaintop with Jesus, Peter, James, John, Moses, and Elijah, we witness a turning point in the life and ministry of Jesus. The point where things take a radical, and for Peter, James, and John, an unexpected turn into the unknown. From the day-to-day work of teaching, preaching, and healing, turning toward Jerusalem and the culmination of Jesus’ life, his public ministry, and to a new life for him and for all. And for us, two millennia later, this is a turning point in our liturgical calendar, as we end the season after Epiphany and turn toward Lent. As we wrap up our look at how Jesus is manifest and revealed as the Son of the Living God, and begin preparation for Easter and the ultimate revelation of who Jesus is and who we are in the new light of Easter morning.

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The Blessing of Salt and Light

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)

Matthew 5.13-20

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

Last week we heard the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount—Jesus’ inaugural sermon, and one in which he essentially lays out his vision for his ministry, as well as some of the central teachings that will guide that ministry. Or, more accurately, teachings that will guide those who seek to follow him, those who will engage in ministry with him. In the portion we heard last Sunday, the Beatitudes, Jesus talks about being blessed. Through the Beatitudes, he presents a confounding and counterintuitive assessment of what it means to be blessed. He makes a statement about who is already blessed, not a proclamation of how to get and keep God’s blessing, be it for ourselves or for others. On the contrary, Jesus is saying the most important thing about divine blessing is that it already is. It has been graciously given. And not just in those places and circumstances we would expect. It is also given—it is especially given—in those places and circumstances that may seem to us far from being blessed. That we receive blessing as pure gift, not as something to be earned, not as a reward for good behavior or right action. As pure gift.

 

In redefining blessing and blessedness, Jesus is proclaiming that no matter who we are, we are blessed by God—even if we don’t always feel it. The Beatitudes are meant to be words of comfort, consolation, and encouragement to all of us. And that in being blessed, we are assured that the kingdom of heaven is already open to us and that we are a part of it. As such, we are invested in the work of that kingdom.

 

Which brings us to today’s portion of the Sermon on the Mount. Before Jesus launches into the remainder of the sermon with teachings on a variety of topics, today he provides several images of encouragement as to what it means to be blessed, to be part of the kingdom of God, to be invested in the work of the kingdom, to actually engage in that work. All leading up to, being preparation for, the more practical instructions of what that work entails. Making more explicit the scope of what it means to be blessed. Of how one lives into and out of the blessedness bestowed on us by God. Jesus primarily does this through two images: “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world.”

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But First, Blessing

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)

Matthew 5.1-12

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

Today we gather our parish family in preparation for our Annual Meeting. While there are certain pieces of business that need to be conducted at the Annual Meeting—electing new Vestry members, electing delegates to Diocesan Convention, and presenting the budget for the new year—the Annual Meeting really is first and foremost a celebration of our common life. A celebration of the work that we have chosen to enter into and engage together as the Body of Christ in this place at this time. One of the ways we do this is by sharing reports—written and verbal—from our parish leaders and from our various ministries. Not as a way of boasting about what we have done, of congratulating ourselves on what great people we are, but as a way of honoring and celebrating how we have used the resources God has entrusted to us as one small way in which the Kingdom of God is being built, one brick at a time, one life at a time.

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Leaving Nets

Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)

Matthew 4.12-23

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

Both last week and today we heard accounts of Jesus calling his first disciples. Last week was the version reported in John’s Gospel and this week is obviously Matthew’s version. And while both involve two of the same future disciples—Andrew and Peter—the process actually differs significantly. As you may recall from last week, Andrew was originally a disciple of John the Baptist. When John, referring to Jesus, says “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” (Jn 1.35), Andrew and another unnamed person immediately go after Jesus. They spend some time together, and at least Andrew switches camps and becomes a disciple of Jesus. He then goes and finds his brother Peter and recruits him to the cause.

 

What we hear today, while also involving Andrew and Peter, is very different. While John tells of Andrew approaching Jesus, here in Matthew it is Jesus who approaches Andrew and Peter. And the impression given is that, until now, Jesus did not know the brothers and vice versa—one stranger approaching two other strangers. While John tells of Andrew spending time with Jesus and getting to know him before deciding to become a disciple, Matthew has Jesus, upon meeting the brothers, immediately issuing the invitation, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” At which point the brothers accept on the spot: “Immediately they left their nets and followed him.”

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Way Opening

Second Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)

John 1.29-42

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

My previous spiritual director was Quaker. A seemingly odd mix. Me, an Episcopal priest, whose piety and worship style is deeply formed and expressed in hierarchical structure and liturgical practices based on word and music, seeking spiritual guidance and direction from Judith. From one whose piety and worship was rooted in a denomination with far less structure and less reliance on clergy, with worship rooted in periods of extended silence waiting for “That of God in everyone” to inspire someone to speak. And yet, it worked. It was actually just what this Episcopal priest needed at the time by way of spiritual guidance. And just as an aside, George Fox, the founder of the Quakers, was actually raised in the Church of England.

 

When struggling with particular issues, spiritual or otherwise, when I was experiencing a sense of uncertainty, sometimes profoundly so, Judith would invariably invoke a Quaker spiritual concept: “way will open.” The concept of trusting that a path forward will become clear when the time is right, often after a period of patient waiting, discernment, and letting go of rigid plans. (I don’t know where Judith got the idea that I would ever have any ingrained ideas or rigid plans.) Way opening often requiring that one undertake an action without clarity about all the details, with respect for the ambiguity of the process, trusting that the path would be made clear as one proceeds.

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Solidarity

First Sunday after the Epiphany – Baptism of Our Lord (Year A)

Matthew 3.13-17

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

The Sunday immediately after Epiphany is always the celebration of the Baptism of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Baptism being one of the three traditional focal points for Epiphany. One of the three images of how Jesus’ identity as the Son of God is manifest. The others being the visit of the Magi which we celebrated last Sunday; and Jesus’ first miracle of changing water into wine at the wedding at Cana, which we only hear once every three years. Being such a focal point for the manifestation of Jesus as God’s Son, and also serving as the initiation of Jesus’ public ministry, as his commissioning for ministry, we hear of his baptism in all four Gospels. While John’s Gospel really only contains what is a passing reference at best with John the Baptist merely noting that he baptized Jesus, the Synoptic Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—contain actual accounts of the event. But of these three, Matthew’s account which we hear today differs ever so slightly, albeit in a significant way. Actually, in two ways. Let this be a bit of a teaser. We’ll get there in due course.

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The Journey of the Magi

The Epiphany

Matthew 2.1-12

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

Before I start, I beg indulgence and forgiveness from the liturgical purists in the crowd. As a matter of transparency, while we are celebrating Epiphany today, today is not actually Epiphany. Epiphany is actually January 6^th—which is this coming Tuesday. Today is actually the second Sunday of Christmas. You see, Christmastide—the Twelve Days of Christmas—run from sundown on Christmas Eve though January 5^th. And yet, while being two distinct seasons, Christmas and Epiphany overlap thematically. Christmas transitioning into Epiphany. Christmas is obviously about the birth of Jesus. Epiphany, meaning “showing forth,” focuses on the manifestation of Jesus as the Son of God, particularly to the Gentiles. The iconic image of this manifestation, this showing forth, being our Gospel reading for today, about the visit of the Magi. Of course, in popular culture, the stories of Christmas and Epiphany are conflated into one event, with many depictions of the birth of Jesus including the arrival of the Magi. Not historically accurate, but we can work with it. So, just as secular culture plays a little fast and loose with the coming of the Wise Men, we can, too, in our liturgical commemorations: bringing together the meanings of Christmas and Epiphany into this transition period between seasons as we prepare to end our celebration of Christmastide and move into our commemoration of Epiphanytide. And this actually works particularly well given the movement of our Gospel reading for today (which, by the way, is also one of the options for the Second Sunday of Christmas, so even the framers of the lectionary recognized the nebulous, more transitory nature of this particular Sunday).

 

Just as we are moving from one season—Christmas—into another—Epiphany—today’s Gospel is about movement. It is about a journey, on multiple levels: literal and metaphorical, physical and spiritual.

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The Why of Christmas 2.0

First Sunday of Christmas

John 1.1-18

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

During the very short Christmas season—a mere twelve days—we have, sometimes one, at most two, Sundays of Christmas. This provides us with limited opportunities to hear Gospel readings that convey what Christmas, what the Incarnation, is truly about. At most, four, when you consider the birth narrative from Luke’s Gospel which we read on Christmas Eve and the Prologue to John’s Gospel which we read on Christmas Day. Depending on the year and how the calendar falls, only three or four shots to focus on the meaning of the Incarnation. And in those limited opportunities, two are, for the most part, the exact same reading. On Christmas Day and on the first Sunday of Christmas, we hear John’s Prologue. With a slight modification. On Christmas Day, we hear the first 14 verses. On the first Sunday of Christmas, we hear four additional verses.

 

We generally think of the birth narrative from Luke, of the manger scene in Bethlehem, as the quintessential Christmas story. As the main image for Christmas. After all, that is how we build up to Christmas: adding figures to the creche throughout Advent, with the baby Jesus being added on Christmas Eve. And, of course, the complete birth narrative is read on Christmas Eve. And yet, the focus on John’s Prologue as being one-half to the two-thirds of the Gospels for Christmastide should tell us something. That it is not the birth narrative itself that is the most important image of Christmas. That in actuality, the real quintessential story is that the “Word became flesh and lived among us.”

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The Why of Christmas

Christmas Day

John 1.1-14

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

I have to confess: between the Christmas Eve service and the Christmas Day service, the Christmas Day service is, by far, my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I really do like the Christmas Eve service, with all its pomp and circumstance, with its pageantry. But, I have to admit that it is all the pomp and circumstance and all the pageantry that actually inhibit, or at least limit, my ability to fully enter into the Christmas Spirit. I have to be more concerned with all the logistics, coordination, that such performative liturgy requires, so that what unfolds provides a meaningful and hopefully moving experience for those attending the service. I don’t say this by way of complaint or criticism. It comes with the collar. I am fulfilling my role as priest of the community, leading my flock through the worship experience they long for, that they need, as part of their Christmas celebration. Which, in and of itself gives me great joy.

 

It is not until the next morning—today, Christmas Day—when I am able to more fully enter into the Christmas experience myself. When the worship is simpler, more intimate. With less to worry about, allowing myself to be more fully present to the meaning of the day and the season. The simplicity and intimacy of Christmas Day that seems to be more akin to what really happened in Bethlehem. The simple setting of a manger. The intimacy of Joseph tending to Mary as she gives birth to her son, to God’s Son. It is only when the angels announce the birth to the shepherds in the nearby fields that things change. They rush to the manger to witness the newborn Messiah. Undoubtedly creating all sorts of disruption and chaos in the process. If this had occurred in a modern-day hospital, the nurse on duty would have undoubtedly shooed everyone out of the room so Mary could get some rest and enjoy some quiet time with her newborn son. Christmas Day is the liturgical equivalent of shooing away the shepherds and all the onlookers, providing an opportunity for us to have a few quiet moments to rest in the presence of the Holy, to enjoy some quiet time with the newborn Jesus.

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Risky Business

Christmas Eve

Luke 2.1-20

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

 

On this most holy of nights, we gather, as in years past, as the faithful have done century upon century, to celebrate the most important and significant event in the course of human history. We heed the call of our opening hymn: “O Come, All Ye Faithful.”

 

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,

O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!

Come, and behold Him, born the King of angels!

O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!

 

We celebrate this joyous event by creating a veritable feast for the senses. As we hear joyful songs describing the birth of our Lord; as we hear the only recorded account of what transpired that night in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. As we look with adoration upon the creche, with its depiction, sanitized though it may be, of the event we celebrate; as we gaze at the candles burning all around us, symbolizing the light that has come into the world, overcoming the power of darkness. As we smell the scent of incense and the Christmas greens and flowers, reminding us of the new life born into our midst—a life that is at once fully human and fully divine. As we taste the bread and the wine at Eucharist, reminding us of the ultimate purpose of the One we celebrate this night. As we feel the embrace of friends and loved ones as we wish each other Merry Christmas. All so celebratory. While new and exciting in many ways, because we only do this once a year, it is also very familiar and comforting. What we have come to expect of our Christmas celebrations.

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