BEING ONE OF A KIND - A REFLECTION

 

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on December 27, 2020 

John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. 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.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.'") From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

REFLECTION

+ In the Name of the Word made flesh. +

The Gospel of John presents us with a theological narrative that utilizes various stories found within the Synoptic Gospels and some found only in John.  The Gospel of John begins with the incarnation of God the Son in the person of Jesus of Nazareth and ends with resurrection of Jesus Christ as the only Son of God.  As the narrative in which Incarnation story is explained, we consider two lines from this morning’s lesson, the familiar “And the Word became flesh and lived among us” and “It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known.”

In last Sunday’s reflection, we read Luke’s account of the annunciation of Jesus’s birth in the light of Mary’s Aaronic lineage as Gabriel described Mary’s  pregnancy in terms of her serving as a tabernacle to house the presence of God in her soon to be born son, Jesus.  The Greek word used in John to described the incarnate Word as having “lived” or “dwelt” among us is a translation of  ἐσκήνωσεν (pronounced es-kay-no-sen).  This Greek word literally means to dwell in a tent and has been interpreted by some as “tabernacled.” In John’s interpretation of the Incarnation as the Word made flesh living among us, we see the connection between Jesus being born as the living Tabernacle who embodied the covenantal (promised) presence of God and Mary who served as the temporary Tabernacle who bore God’s presence in the baby taking shape in her womb. 

The point of both Mary and Jesus being described as a tabernacle (a tent) is that a tent is movable. It brings to mind the Exodus. While the Israelites moved about the wilderness, the Tabernacle, where the presence of God dwelled, went them also.  It was a visible sign and symbol of God being present with them during their journey to the Promised Land.  As such, Jesus is the sign and symbol of God’s indwelling presence not only amongst us but also tabernacled within us to demonstrate that God goes where we go. 

The Gospel of John is not a stand-alone Gospel.  It depends on its readers having knowledge of Jesus of Nazareth’s story found in the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke in order to make sense of its theological portrayal of Jesus.  The Gospel of John is what I would describe as an in-house Gospel; in that, it was written with those who are followers of Jesus and those who desire to deepen their understanding of Jesus in mind. 

One of the ways the Gospel of John deepens our understanding of Jesus is to speak of him in terms of being God the “only” Son.  You might recall the closing sentence of my Christmas reflection, “So let us… adore one of our kind who is one of a kind, Emmanuel, God with us.”  Jesus being one of kind is the literal translation of the Greek word used in John’s original gospel text,  μονογενὴς (pronounced mon-og-en-ace).

This word is often interpreted as “only” or as “only begotten;” as God the only Son in the last sentence of today’s lesson.  Mονογενὴς is only used in the scriptures attributed to John when referring to Jesus as the Son of God.  Its use can be misunderstood as meaning Jesus is the only child of God.  That is not how this term is used in John.  John is clear in today’s lesson that we too have “power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God” The use of God the only Son has a history.

“God the only Son” was intentionally designed to defy the notion of anyone other than Jesus of Nazareth laying claim to that title.  This was particularly important at the time the Gospel of John was being written, since each Roman emperor was worshiped as a “Son of God” (in a pagan sense); that is, bearing the divine genius (a divine essence or presence) in their being an emperor.  

Jesus is one of a kind; in that, being one of our kind he came into our history to be for us the Tabernacle of God’s presence and to reveal and reintroduce us to God as our Father.   The Gospel of John offers us a cosmological perspective of Jesus Christ as not only God with us but also God in us, and we in God.  [See John 15]

With what we know today about the universe, the one of a kind-ness presented in Jesus is also reflective of who we are.  We know that within the universe there are uncountable galaxies with innumerable solar systems and lanets.  While the possibility exists, to date, not a single planet has been discovered that supports life as we know it. 

That this creative Word, which brought everything into being, chose to create us on this lovely speck of cosmic dust we call home gives one a sense that we and everything sharing life with us on this speck are μονογενὴς, a one of kind creation.  That God loved us so much to intimately engage with what has to be an almost undetectable microscopic speck in the vast array of creation in order to prove to us that we are uniquely and deeply loved is extremely humbling.  On this Sunday, let us continue to peer into the manger at Bethlehem to cherish and ponder the deep and immense love of God wrapped in one of our own peering back at us.

Amen

* * * * * * * * * * 

Until next time, stay faithful.

Norm

A BREATH OF CHRISTMAS AIR - A REFLECTION

 

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on December 24, 2020 

THE GOSPEL

Luke 2:1-20

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest heaven,

        and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

REFLECTION

A very Merry Christmas to all reading this devotion.  May this night find you well and filled with joy. 

* * * * * * * * * * 

On this holy night, as we recall the wondrous story of Jesus’ birth, I invite you to relax, to sit silently, and to catch your breath, just for a moment. This year has been an arduous journey for all of us. So take in the blessed silence of this moment. Let it be framed by the calmness of your breathing the air that has been inhaled and exhaled by every life form on this planet for countless eons. Breathe the air contained in the very first breath of the newly born Jesus and be born again this night.  

Let us embark on an imaginative journey back to Bethlehem and take in the night air surrounding that wondrous birth.  

* * * * * * * * * *

Now, just for a moment, imagine how a very pregnant Mary and a very anxious Joseph came to the end of a long day after the arduous journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem to be counted and taxed by the Romans.  Imagine their frustration at not being able to find any place to stay for the night when Mary could give birth at any time.  Imagine their resolve in having to take the offer of the only available space, a covered stable back of a crowded and noisy inn. 

* * * * * * * * * * 

Now, just for a moment, imagine Mary delivering her first child, our very brother Jesus, into our world with only Jospeh by her side to help as the stable animals nonchalantly look on.  Imagine the breathing of Mary as she gives birth to a baby, the anxious breathing of the soon to be father, Joseph, and then the quick intake of the newborn Jesus’ first breath.  Imagine, after the pain and anxiety of childbirth, the joyful breathing of relief that followed, and the adoring breath of new parents looking with wonderment at their breathing, living child wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in manger.  

* * * * * * * * * *

Now, just for a moment, imagine the silence that ensues as that night deepens and the world slumbers. Imagine the tired out parents of a baby boy huddle lovingly around this wondrous bundle of joy that is theirs alone, if just for a moment. 

* * * * * * * * * * * 

Now, just for a moment, imagine the angels allowing the holy family their brief moment of silent joy.  Imagine how they cannot contain the joy of heaven and have to tell someone in the slumbering world what it is sleeping through.  Imagine them going to the only people awake in the region, a group of shepherds doing night duty on hillside with their flock.   Imagine how those shepherds’ night suddenly becomes day as an angel stands before them and announces that a new day has dawned, a baby is born, the long awaited Messiah.  Imagine how the whole sky lights up with intense star light as the angelic hosts breaking out in song, “Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace on earth.” 

 * * * * * * * * * * *

Now, just for a moment, imagine those shepherds quickly taking leave of their flocks and heading into to town to see for themselves this joy that awaits them in the stable outback of the inn.  Imagine the eager shepherds catching their breath as they explain to a surprised Mary and Joseph why they have arrived, how they couldn’t wait, and how heaven is rejoicing in song that will forever linger for them in the twinkling starlight of every night from that moment on.  Imagine how, with their arrival, Mary is taken back to the moment Gabriel appeared to her, how the impossibility she wondered about then is now being adored by a group of humble shepherds as she and Joseph look on.

* * * * * * * * * * 

Now, just for a moment, relax and breathe in the breath of ages. Take in God’s life-giving breath expressed in the breathing of Mary and Joseph at the end of their arduous journey, the breath of their anxiety, the breath of their frustration, and the breath of their resolve, but mostly take in God’s life-giving breath in that first breath of Jesus, the breathing and life-giving Love of God.

On this holy night, let us take in the unity that is present in the air we share with them and the world we live in.  For as we live and breathe, we give expression to God’s new creation “born in us today.”  The birth of Jesus Christ is in truth the birthday of us all.  So let us journey with the shepherds to that manger and adore one of our kind who is one of a kind, Emmanuel, God with us.

               Now the waiting time is done,

               Earth’s long winter overcome.

               Light illuminates darkest skies.

               Weary people now arise and

               Greet this time, it has no end,

               Alpha and Omega enters in.

               Let hearts be filled with Christmas light

               For in the Child’s approach this night

               It is we who arrive, Loves’ greatest delight

                                                  [Norm Wright  December 24, 2008]

AMEN.

* * * * * * * * * * 

Until next time, stay faithful.

Norm

TWO QUESTIONS, TWO PREGNANCIES, TWO SONGS - A REFLECTION

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on December 20, 2020 

The Song of Zechariah 

Benedictus Dominus Deus 

Luke 1:68-79

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; 

he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,  

born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old, that he would save us from our enemies, 

from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers 

and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, 

to set us free from the hands of our enemies, free to worship him without fear, 

holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,  

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

To give his people knowledge of salvation  by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God 

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, 

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

The Book of Common Prayer, 1979

THE SONG OF MARY 

Magnificat

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

   And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.

For he hath regarded

   The lowliness of his handmaiden.

For behold from henceforth

   All generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me,

   And holy is his Name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him

   Throughout all generations.

He hath showed strength with his arm;

   He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat,

   And hath exalted the humble and meek.

He hath filled the hungry with good things,

   And the rich he hath sent empty away.

He remembering his mercy hath helped his servant Israel,

   As he promised to our forefather,

   Abraham and his seed for ever.

The Book of Common Prayer, 1979

Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, [a word absent in the original Greek text] you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

To gain a fuller appreciation of Luke’s conceptualization of the birth of Jesus, readers might read the entire first chapter of Luke.

REFLECTION

+ O come, thou Wisdom from on high, who orders all things mightily+

Luke begins his Gospel with the story of two unexpected pregnancies framed by two questions and two songs of praise.  The unexpected pregnancies are that of Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptizer and Mary the mother of Jesus. Their story is told within the context of their ancestral relationships to the Aaronic priesthood, which brings to mind Israel’s wilderness period in which the Tabernacle was constructed as a meeting place to worship God and house the Ark of the Covenant, where the Shekinah, the presence of God dwelt.   

Luke’s Gospel presents the birth of John and the birth of Jesus as a complimentary set of events.  Elizabeth’s pregnancy is no less a mystery than Mary’s.  Each of their sons is given a role to play in God’s liberating and redeeming work. John is likened to the voice crying in the wilderness that prepares the way of the Lord (Jesus) as prophesied in Isaiah. 

Both Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah were descendants of the priestly line of Aaron, Moses’ brother. It is while Zechariah is serving as a priest in the Temple at Jerusalem that the angel Gabriel appears to him in its sanctuary and announces that his “barren” wife Elizabeth would give birth to a son. Garbreil instructs Zechariah to call him John.  Frightened, confounded, and feeling somewhat beyond the hope of such a miracle, Zechariah asks, “How can I be sure?”  

Since Zechariah has his doubts, Gabriel, in a reversal of the role Aaron played as the spokesperson for Moses, informs Zechariah that he will be rendered speechless until the day of John’s birth.  When the speechless Zechariah returns home after his tour of Temple duty, Elizabeth becomes pregnant.  

Gabriel then appears to Mary, a young girl, living in the Galilean village of Nazareth engaged to Joseph, a descendent of King David.  When Gabriel greets her, Mary’s reaction is also one of fear and confusion.  Gabriel tells Mary she will conceive a son and instructs her to call his name Jesus.  Like Zechariah, Mary has a question, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?’ [literal Greek translation].  

The difference between Zechariah’s question and Mary’s is that Zechariah’s question does not proceed from faith, but from a desire for certitude, to know for sure.  Mary’s question proceeds from the wonderment of faith; that this impossibility could be possible.  It is not a question that is looking for a birds and bees answer, but rather a personal enquiry into the joyous mystery of being gifted with a son who “will be called the Son of the Most High,”

Staying with the Aaronic connection, Gabriel explains this wondrous birth in terms of Mary becoming a human tabernacle in which the presence of God descends and overshadows her, with the child she will bear becoming like the  Ark of a new Covenant where God’s presence resides, as suggested in Gabriel’s declaration, “the child to be born will be holy”. 

Gabriel informs Mary that her older relative Elizabeth is also pregnant to affirm for Mary that “nothing will be impossible with God.”  Mary opens herself to the will of God saying, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  As a blood relative of Elizabeth, we learn that Mary is also a descendent of the priestly line of Aaron. 

Luke makes sure that we don’t overlook the importance of Joseph.  Joseph being a direct descendent of King David is an important part of Luke’s story. Luke implies that Joseph’s role is that of Jesus’ biological father, since royal lineage is passed through the father’s genes. While the conception of Jesus as the Christ Child in whom the fulness of God resides does not depend on a human biological explanation, Jesus being the son (a descendent) of King David does.  

When Mary and Elizabeth meet later in Chapter 1of Luke, the yet unborn John gives Elizabeth a joyful kick.  Elizabeth then blesses Mary and “the fruit” of her womb, Jesus, after which Mary burst into praise and wonderment at being chosen by God with the words of the Magnificat.

The first chapter of Luke’s Gospel ends with the birth of John the Baptizer.  On the day that John was to be circumcised, the gathered relatives of Elizabeth and Zechariah ask what they will name him, thinking he would be named after Zechariah.  Elizabeth, speaking for the still speechless Zechariah, says he will be named John.  When the relatives complained that none of their relations have such a name, they approach the speechless Zechariah and ask him.  He motions his agreement that the baby will be called John and immediately his speech is restored, and he too bursts into praising God with the words of our first canticle, the Benedictus Dominus Deus.

In the Eastern Orthodox Church,  Mary is called the Theotokos, which means God-bearer.  From this term comes the Western concept of Mary being the Mother of God.   That Mary holds an exalted place in the Church is not surprising.  Having born in her womb the one whose image we bear, Mary is understood by many to be our Mother.  Mary serves as the model for all who ponder the mystery of faith and hold the Christ Child, the Ark of the New Covenant, in their hearts.  Amen

* * * * * * * * * *

Until next time, stay faithful.

Norm

THE GIFTS THAT KEEP ON GIVING - A REFLECTION

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on December 13, 2020 

THE FIRST LESSON

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

because the Lord has anointed me;

he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,

to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and release to the prisoners;

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,

and the day of vengeance of our God; 

to comfort all who mourn;

to provide for those who mourn in Zion—

to give them a garland instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.

They shall build up the ancient ruins,

they shall raise up the former devastations;

they shall repair the ruined cities,

the devastations of many generations.

For I the Lord love justice,

I hate robbery and wrongdoing;

I will faithfully give them their recompense,

and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Their descendants shall be known among the nations,

and their offspring among the peoples;

all who see them shall acknowledge

that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.

I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,

my whole being shall exult in my God;

for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,

he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,

as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,

and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

For as the earth brings forth its shoots,

and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,

so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise

to spring up before all the nations.

THE SECOND LESSON

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil.

May the God of peace himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

REFLECTION

by

Norm Wright

+ Spirit of the living God, descend on us we pray. Amen +

On this third Sunday of Advent, things get a little pink as we light the Gaudate (Latin for rejoice) candle.  Historically, it was meant to give us a break during this penitential season of Advent, and perhaps we need a break, if not from penitence, then from the hustle of getting Christmas gifts bought, wrapped, and sent off to friends and relatives who we will not be able to gather together this year. 

In our second lesson this morning, Paul gives us this advice, “Do not quench (extinguish) the Spirit. Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil.” So let’s spend a little time and apply today’s first lesson from Isaiah’s to ourselves as individuals and as the family of Christ.

The Book of Isaiah is one of the most important books of the Old Testament for Christians.  In the early Church, it was considered by some to be the fifth Gospel, as so much of the times, the life, and the ministry of Jesus resonated with the prophecies found in it. 

Throughout the Gospels, Isaiah is frequently quoted to identify Jesus as the one promised who will redeem the world.  Jesus, himself, identified with these prophesies.  In particular, the Gospel of Luke has Jesus reading the first two verses from this morning’s lesson from Isaiah in his home town synagogue of Nazareth and applying them to himself. [See Luke 4:14-21] 

In past reflections, I have made a point of saying that what is true for Jesus is true for us and that what is true about us is also true about Jesus.  With that perspective in mind, I ask that we look at the first two verses of Isaiah’s prophecy that Jesus identified with and apply them to ourselves. 

In baptism, we affirm that the Spirit of the Lord is upon us; that we, like Jesus, are children of God in whom God is well-pleased.  Like Jesus, we are thrust into the wilderness of life in which we are tested and where we are to test everything and to hold fast to what is good and to abstain from (and I would add to challenge as Jesus did) every form of evil both in our lives and in the world in which we live. 

In light of Jesus’ identification with Isaiah’s prophecy, we find ourselves gifted like Jesus to become the bearers of good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, to release prisoners, and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.  In Luke’s version of this passage, Jesus added recovery of sight to the blind; that is, to shed light on what we have become blind to.  

These are the gifts of the Spirit that keep on giving.  They are continually handed down through the generations by those who were freed from oppression, those whose hearts were healed, those liberated from captivity, those released from prison, and those who were enabled to see clearly.  In short, these are the gifts that have been handed down to us, God’s healed and liberated people.  

As Isaiah’s prophecy proclaims, “They (we) will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins… the devastations of many generations. Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.”   

These gifts already come packaged in us. They come wrapped in the compassion, forgiveness, and unconditional love shown to us and shown through us. They are the everyday gifts we give to our family members, our friends, our neighbors, co-workers, and everyone we come into contact with.  The ability to give good news, to heal, to liberate, to release, and to enable sight is in our possession to be gifted to others.  

Christ’s gift to the world is us, and our gift to the world is Christ.  It is in this cycle of receiving and giving that the Kingdom of God, as the “people whom the Lord has blessed,” is revealed.  Therefore, let us be confident that the one who calls us is faithful and will accomplish this in our lives.  

* * * * * * * * * * 

God of peace, sanctify us entirely that every spirit, soul, and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

* * * * * * * * * *

Until next time, stay faithful.

Norm

COMFORT - A REFLECTION

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on December 6, 2020

Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13

Benedixisti, Domine

1 You have been gracious to your land, O Lord, 

you have restored the good fortune of Jacob.

2 You have forgiven the iniquity of your people 

and blotted out all their sins.

8 I will listen to what the Lord God is saying, 

for he is speaking peace to his faithful people

and to those who turn their hearts to him.

9 Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him, 

that his glory may dwell in our land.

10 Mercy and truth have met together; 

righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

11 Truth shall spring up from the earth, 

and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

12 The Lord will indeed grant prosperity, 

and our land will yield its increase.

13 Righteousness shall go before him, 

and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.

The Book of Common Prayer, 1979

Isaiah 40:1-11

Comfort, O comfort my people,

says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

and cry to her

that she has served her term,

that her penalty is paid,

that she has received from the Lord's hand

double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:

“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,

make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be lifted up,

and every mountain and hill be made low;

the uneven ground shall become level,

and the rough places a plain.

Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,

and all people shall see it together,

for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

A voice says, “Cry out!”

And I said, “What shall I cry?”

All people are grass,

their constancy is like the flower of the field.

The grass withers, the flower fades,

when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;

surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades;

but the word of our God will stand for ever.

Get you up to a high mountain,

O Zion, herald of good tidings;

lift up your voice with strength,

O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,

lift it up, do not fear;

say to the cities of Judah,

“Here is your God!”

See, the Lord God comes with might,

and his arm rules for him;

his reward is with him,

and his recompense before him.

He will feed his flock like a shepherd;

he will gather the lambs in his arms,

and carry them in his bosom,

and gently lead the mother sheep.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

REFLECTION

+ O come, thou Dayspring from on high and cheer us by your drawing nigh. +

Comfort.  The very word conjures up a heartfelt desire that longs for it; some news that will bring comfort to us weary souls dealing with a very difficult year that has us coping with a deadly pandemic in an atmosphere of the contentiousness of politics. 

Over the past several Sundays, we have reflected on the shadowy side of God’s compassion in the context of the question, “Where are we taking God?”  We explored the applicability of the harsh sounding but important prophesies from the Old Testament and Jesus’ discussion of end times in the light of what is taking place in our world today.  These were not comfortable readings nor were they comfortable reflections.  The intent was to give voice to our feelings of discomfort by looking at its causes and finding affirmation in our scriptures that God is with us in the moments of our discomfort, even when such moments lead to feelings of abandonment.

Comfort.  To know comfort is to have experienced feeling discomfort.  To know love is to have experienced feeling unloved.  To know forgiveness is to have experienced feeling unforgiven. The yin and yang dimension these complimentary opposites possess provides the momentum needed to keep us pursuing the comfort and peace this world longs for but cannot give.

Both the last Sunday of the last Church Year and the first Sunday of this Church Year were anchored in Jesus’ comments on the end times with his disciples.  Having crossed that bridge, we find ourselves fully into the new Church Year.  On this second Sunday of Advent we are offered a new perspective in what the well-known Christmas carol describes as “glad tidings of great comfort and joy.”  As such, the question of where we are taking God in our journey through this life becomes where is God leading us on our journey through this life?  

Comfort.  That sense of ease that allows us to put up our feet, safe in the knowledge that everything will be alright is something that is truly longed for in our anxious world.  The readings from the Psalms and the Book of Isaiah this morning couldn’t have come at a better time than in a year such as this. The answer to the question where is God leading us on our journey through this life is proclaimed in the first two verses of this morning’s psalm, “You have been gracious to your land, O Lord, you have restored the good fortune of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of your people and blotted out all their sins.”  If we are alert to the Advent call, we know through the eyes of faith “that salvation is near to us;" that it is present in our lives.  

Perhaps the most intriguing lines in this morning’s psalm is “Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.”   This anthropomorphic imagery of mercy and truth meeting like two people greeting each other and righteousness and peace kissing each other is nothing short of brilliant.  To see rather abstract concepts take on a life of their own; meeting and kissing as if they were human individuals is purposeful.  At a certain level, mercy and truth and righteousness and peace are conveyed through the shape we give them. The truly merciful welcome the truth and the truly righteous bring about peace. 

Comfort.  The writer of Isaiah’s prophecy uses this word to ease the discomfort felt by those Judeans who were taken into captivity by the Babylonians due to their unfaithfulness towards God.  But God did not abandon them.  In spite of their unfaithfulness, God was faithful and remained with them in their exile.

In the King James Version, the first two verses of today’s first lesson begins with the familiar, “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished.”  I prefer that interpretation of the Hebrew because their warring ways did not result in God going to war with them.  On the contrary, God says that their warfare was ended; a warfare with the spiritual darkness that led them into exile, a warfare with the spiritual forces that could have torn them apart as a people, and the spiritual warfare each individual undoubtedly suffered throughout their exile.  To these exiles, the prophet shouts, “Prepare a highway for God” while in the wilderness of their exile and to take comfort in their discomfort because God was going to lead them home.  

Comfort.  As Christians, we see something universal in Isaiah’s prophecy.  God remains with us in every wilderness moment and in every moment of our discomfort to comfort us; reminding us that all such moments are just that, moments.  On this Sunday, we hear again in Isaiah the words we heard in Psalm 90, several Sunday ago:  “All people are like grass” to which Isaiah adds, “The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand for ever.”  

Time is fleeting.  This moment is fleeting and will soon pass away, as will the moment that is me,  the moment that is we, and the moment that is everything we see.  What comforts us is what does not pass away; that creative desire which brought us into being in the first place and gave way to the Word made flesh, that Word we carry within, and that Word which will carry us home, Emmanuel - God with us.

* * * * * * * * * * 

O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray; cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today.  O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel!”  Amen.

* * * * * * * * * * 

Until next time, stay faithful.

Norm

DESIRE - A REFLECTION

 

This Reflection is taken from the Sunday Devotion written by this blogger for Christ Episcopal Church, Yankton, SD on November 29, 2020

THE FIRST LESSON

Malachi 3:1-5

“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.

“So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the Lord Almighty.

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011  Used by permission. 

CANTICLE

Veni, veni, Emmanuel

O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel,

that mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice!  Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!

O come, Desire of nations, bind in one the hearts of all mankind, 

bid thou our sad divisions cease, and be thyself our King of Peace.

Rejoice!  Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!

THE SECOND LESSON

Mark 13:26-27, 32-37

Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.  And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

. 

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.

REFLECTION

+Come Desire of nations, come+

I like watching documentaries about the universe.  I’m no scientist by any stretch of the imagination, but I am always struck by how much theoretical physics and theology compliment each other.  This should not come as a surprise because both theory and theology share the same root word, “theo,” the Greek word for God.  Both theory and theology are, in a very literal sense, rooted in God.  Both are garnered from our experiences, observations, and revelations (discoveries) that help us understand our being; albeit from different perspectives and expressed in different ways. 

What fascinates me most are the scientific theories that attempt to explain the origins of our universe, generalized as the Big Bang; when everything that is and will be was ignited into existence some 14 billion years ago.  If I were to describe this event, using the language of scripture, the word that comes to mind to describe what ignited the “Big Bang” is desire; as in, the desire to be. 

The desire to be was expressed in the first words uttered by God recorded in our scriptures,  “Let there be light,” at which point there was a big bang that lit everything up and from which everything proceeded and continues to proceed.  That original burst of light and utterance can be seen as a detectable back-glow at the furtherest edges of the known universe and heard as radio waves via the technologies used in space exploration.  In other words, the desire to be is still resonating and being played out in the universe. 

Desire is an essential component to being in love.  Love doesn’t exist without desire.  Love proceeds from desire, and love seeks to be desired and loved in return.  If God is Love, then desire is an essential component of God, that being in which we live and move and have our being. [Acts 17:28]  In the language of astrophysics, we can say desire serves as the back-glow to all of God’s loving and kenotic (outpouring) creativity.  

   

Had God wanted a universe to act like a clock ticking time away or create a set of tinker toys to play with, we wouldn’t be here.  God could have simply avoided the messes we make by not making us who we are.  That we are here today says something about God’s desire for a cognitive and willful response to the love that was released at the start of our universe.  We are the result of that desire and that love. 

One of the attributes we acquired when God our Father made us in his image is that we were imbued with a desire to be known and to be loved for who we are so that we can desire to know and love God as our Father.  In this sense, the fall of humankind, as recorded in the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, appears to be a test more than a fall from grace.  Taking the bait of temptation gave proof of our ability to desire, to be willful, and to be knowing.  The outcome of the “Fall” permitted us to fall in love with God willfully, knowingly, and to acquire a desire to know God and to know what it is to be loved and known by God in return.   

Like any parent, God would get frustrated with us precisely because we are willful and have a tendency to stray off on our own; forgetting who we are and whose we are.   There were days, scripture tells us, when God thought, “What did I get myself into by making these children?  Do I start over or do I just keep on loving them? And if I keep loving them, how will they know that I love them?”

Instead of getting rid of the headaches that we are at times, God’s desire to be known and loved by us led God to demonstrate, through one of us, that God truly loves us, truly knows us, and is truly with us in every step we take in this life’s journey.  For Christians, this desire of God to be with us  - to be Emmanuel - is theologically explained in the first chapter of the Gospel of John where the story of creation in Genesis is retold in the light of Christ:  

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life….  (And that )Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us..” [ John 1:1-4, 14*]

Musing on desire brought to mind today’s first lesson from the prophet Malachi.  It also brought to mind a verse from the prophet Haggai on which our Canticle this morning is based, “ I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty.” [Haggai 2:7*] Malachi and Haggai were prophets during the time the second Temple was being constructed; the Temple that Jesus was having a conversation about the end times with his disciples, as recorded in last Sunday’s Gospel of Matthew and this morning’s Gospel of Mark.  

Both Malachi’s and Haggai’s prophesies mention a desire for the one coming into our lives who would shake us up, refine us, and make us shine.  Malachi casts this messenger as a judge and asks, “Who can stand the day of his coming?”  

What catches one’s attention in this Old Testament reading is its last statement, “‘but do not fear me,’ says the Lord Almighty”  What an unexpected thought, after saying this messenger will judge.   Given Malachi’s description of this judge, why wouldn’t one be fearful? 

That odd statement not to fear God, heard in the Christian ear, resonates with what we know.  Jesus, the Son of Man and our brother,  who is our judge gave his verdict on the cross: “Forgiven!”  As such, there is no need to fear the righteous one who was judged unrighteous; the one who was executed because of his innocence, and the one who experienced our every weakness on the cross and still desired to forgive and to heal all with his dying breath.

God, our Father, granted our brother Jesus’ dying desire in that indescribable light of the risen Christ Jesus, who emerged from the chaos of a tomb to be the first-fruit (the start) of a new creation. 

That redeeming/recreating event brings us to where we are today as members of Christ’s rising body on a journey into being the children God desires us to be. 

As we begin a new Church Year, Advent calls us to examine ourselves as the willful, knowing, desirous, and, at times, rebellious children we are and awakens us to whose we are.

 

Advent calls us to examine the life of our brother Jesus so that we may know and follow the one who is the desire of nations and the hope of the world.

Come desire of nations, come!  Come to us and abide with us, O Lord, Emmanuel!  Amen. 

 

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Until next time, stay faithful,

Norm