Sermon for St. Michael’s and
Incarnation Episcopal Church
By The Rev. Martha Frances+
Christmas Eve (Christmas Day
1)
Text: Luke 2: 1-14 [15-20]
Others: Isaiah
9: 2-4, 6-7; Psalm 96: 1-4, 11-12; Titus 2: 11-14
Last Sunday night, we held
the wonderful Joys of Christmas celebration with lights & tasty soups &
singing & donkey & sheep & children dressed up in costume—just like
every year since way back when for many of you. I participated in a similar pageant last Christmas Eve with
those at Incarnation. Yet, as we
walked out into the chilly night to sing the songs & watch the children of
some of those who once were children in the same pageant, I saw a little
shepherd slip up to the Virgin Mary a couple or three times, peering into the
bundle cuddled in her arms to see if—for real—the baby Jesus was there.
How do we know for sure
about this Jesus? How could this
small, vulnerable baby born in a backwater town half a world away truly be the
Son of God? How do we find out for
ourselves, those of us who are too grown up to slip up to the manger? Where is the babe in the manger for us in the midst of our families
gathered together over the holidays? Or for those of us who are alone? For those of us who have to return to work Monday
morning? How do we know that this
kid is “the one?”
As I read over this story
of Luke’s gospel, probably the most famous Bible story of all, I wondered how
many of us hearing it today would listen the same eager way that little boy
looked for Jesus the other night.
For how many of us is the coming of Jesus this December of 2005 truly
good news, even when we get back to the everydayness of January 10th?
We have much more sophisticated
methods of registration & taxation than when “all the world” went to their
hometowns to be registered & taxed when Quirinius was Governor of
Syria. And make no mistake about
it, Caesar Augustus’ purpose in the registration was so all the world could be
taxed.
Luke actually says little
of the actual birth. We’re simply
told that Mary gave birth to her firstborn son, she & Joseph wrapped him in
bands of cloth—one of the poorer translations of “swaddling clothes,” in my
opinion—& laid him in a manger because the local hotel had a “no vacancy”
sign. That’s it! Now, I’m a mother twice over, & I
can tell you that Luke the physician should have said more about that first
birth. After all, it had to take
more time & pain for Mary than is indicated here. Luke’s brevity is likely because he, being a man, never had
a baby himself.
What do the shepherds out
in the fields have to tell us? A
wild story about angels appearing to them! Now I like angels as much as the next person, & I have
nothing against shepherds, but the interchange between angels & shepherds
takes up more of the passage than the birth itself. Anyway, what did the shepherds’ bosses think about their
chasing off to follow the angels’ preposterous tale of a baby born in a
manger? Neglect of duty; that’s
what they were probably charged with!
So what’s it all
about? What about this story
leaves Mary treasuring the shepherds’ words & pondering them in her
heart? What about this story may
leave us treasuring & pondering
it in our hearts? Is Jesus real for us this year?
It’s helpful, I think, to
approach the nativity with the glistening-eyed awe of the little shepherd last
weekend. Jesus told us we must
become as little children, & this story requires a child-like naivete to
come to it again as if for the first time. After centuries of looking for the Savior the prophets
foretold, Jesus is born, & even the angels tell us this is glorious. Let’s tiptoe up to the manger to see
this baby as if he were, indeed, the most important baby in the world!
It’s the scandal of
particularity which also makes this story real to us today. Although we’re making some news in the
Diocese of Texas right now by the combining of our 2 parishes, we don’t tend to
be the movers & shakers in today’s world. We’re not the sort of folk who would get invited to Emperor
Augustus’ winter ball or even Quirinius’ Thanksgiving dinner. Isn’t gonna happen!
And yet, this Jesus of
Nazareth who wasn’t even born in
That’s just the point, in
fact. It was for God’s sake—& our sake—that this Emmanuel—God with
us—came to earth born a common baby like you & me & yet also is the
most particular person ever born.
Who on earth noticed?
Actually, no one but his parents at first. It took a whole passel of angels even to get the shepherds’
attention. The swarmy shepherds
came to worship someone born in a worse situation than they themselves were in,
I’ll wager. The shepherds wouldn’t
have shown up had the angels not been singing their lungs out about glory to
God & peace on earth.
Oh, yeah, there’s the
peace on earth part. Jesus was
born into a world—& into a part of the world—where there was little peace,
& still isn’t.
We certainly live today
with a fear which must not be too different from those who lived under the Pax
Romana of
The angels sang “Peace on
earth” to that world then & to our world now because God’s peace goes beyond
war or end of hostilities. Of
course, we pray for the cease of warfare & relief from our fears. It is human & natural to do so. But the peace the angels proclaimed to
the shepherds—& to us—goes beyond circumstance of war or danger or economic
insecurity. That peace is what we
carry within us when we can say with
How do we wage that sort
of peace? It begins with our
getting up in the morning saying “Good morning, God” instead of “Good God, it’s
morning,” & going about our day with peace in our hearts, no matter what
happens. It continues with our
sharing the little miracles we notice because we are at peace with those around
us. Further, it continues with our
sharing our gifts & our resources with those beyond our usual peer group.
Jesus the Christ was born
to a human mother on Christmas morning just like each of us, born into a world
much like our own. Those who were
summoned were much more like us than
those we might see at the National Cathedral on TV, & that’s part of the
good news. All of us are brothers
& sisters in Christ & are worthy.
Each of us are counted—just like Mary & Joseph who had to travel to
the family home in Bethlehem to sign up.
And what are we called to
do? Worship, the angels say. Make this Jesus the Lord of our lives
throughout the year. The passage
from Titus tells us that God’s grace has come among us to train us to renounce
those securities the world relies upon & to lead godly & upright lives,
waiting in hope for the glory of God.
Pretty amazing, isn’t it?
Yet terribly down-to-earth.
And real. And
believable. So our proper response
is to worship, confident that God’s glory will direct our paths. We can sing with the angels, “Glory to
God in the highest heaven, & on earth peace among those whom he
favors!” And those whom he favors,
my friends, are all of us.
Alleluia! Jesus Christ is
born this day. Alleluia!
Sermon for St. Michael’s
& Incarnation Episcopal Church
The Reverend Martha Frances
Year B, Advent IV
18 December 2005
Other: 2 Samuel 7: 4, 8-16; Psalm 132: 8-15;
Romans 16: 25-27
This crisp December morning reminds me of that
morning years ago when the angel came.
May I tell you about it?
I was sitting alone in the sunniest corner of the
garden that morning, doing hand work for my dowry, letting my mind wander to
the stories about my betrothed’s family.
I was to be wed—in fact, was already engaged—to a man of the house of
David, that greatest of all Hebrew kings of generations back. Joseph was much older than myself. Let’s see, I must have been only about
13 at the time, & my father reminded me often that I was quite fortunate to
be betrothed to such a prominent family.
Quite frankly, I saw little difference in the modest living conditions
of Joseph’s family & mine, but Joseph was a kind man, & I knew that I
was truly blessed to be preparing to go from my own father’s home to Joseph’s
just months from then.
That morning I was remembering that the rabbi had
told us of one of the prophet Nathan’s visits to King David. David had planned to build a temple for
the Ark of the Covenant to be housed & in which the people could
worship. Nathan repeated God’s
command to David, however, telling him that he was not to build the
temple. Rather, God promised that
David’s descendents would be the dwelling place for passing down the
Covenant. Indeed, the Messiah has
always been expected to be from David’s family line. We sing about it in some of the psalms: “The Lord has sworn an oath to David;
in truth, he will not break it: ‘A son, the fruit of your body will I set upon
your throne.’”
Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of me there in
the garden. Scared me about out of
my wits! He said, “Greetings,
favored one! The Lord is with
you!”
I thought perhaps he had heard me singing about my
intended’s ancestor David. I was
flustered & didn’t know what on earth he meant. I must have looked like I had seen a ghost, because this
creature said to me, “Do not be afraid, Mary.” So he knew my name!
He told me that God had chosen me to get pregnant & bear a son—gee,
was that a laugh! I hadn’t even
slept with Joseph yet! Such
indiscretion would never have been accepted in the little town of
Jesus, my baby’s name was to be called. The angel—I decided that was who he
must be—went on to tell me how great a man my baby would be—made him sound just
like God himself. I finally got my
breath & reminded the angel in no uncertain terms that I was a virgin &
certainly not “that kind of girl.”
At which point, the angel really freaked me out. He said that the Holy Spirit would make
the pregnancy possible. Can you
believe it? Well, I was absolutely
amazed & thought perhaps the soup we had had for supper the night before
had upset my stomach.
Then the angel outdid himself in outlandish tales. He told me that my elderly cousin
Elizabeth—you know, the priest Zachariah’s wife—was also pregnant & would
shortly bear a son. I was
overwhelmed with this news, but I have to tell you that something about the
angel’s words were very convincing.
Perhaps it was that he ended his announcement by reminding me that with
God, nothing is impossible.
I’m not sure how I answered the angel, but it must
have been something like, “Sure, okay.
Whatever. Who am I to argue
with God or even with God’s messengers?”
By the time I looked up, the angel had disappeared.
Well, I didn’t know what to think, & I sat there
stunned for quite awhile, but eventually, I decided that I’d just take off to
That’s been a long time ago. And much water has gone under the
bridge, as they say. My baby Jesus
was indeed the joy of my life, & the heartache, too, I must say. But that’s a story for another
day. For today, I’m content with
remembering the angel’s visit.
Sermon: 3rd Sunday
of Advent Year B “Rose Sunday”
December 11, 2005
Canticle 15, Isaiah 65:17-25, 1 Thessalonians 5:12-15, 16-28 John 3:23-30
Linda Shelton -- Second year
student, Diaconal track, IONA School of Ministry, Diocese of Texas
To the People of St. Michael’s and Incarnation Church
Good Morning, and …
Welcome to this, the third Sunday of Advent, a special day in our Advent season … this season of preparation. Today is often called “Rose Sunday,” a day of stopping in the midst of all that we are doing to recall for whom and what we are preparing. It is a day of rejoicing (and we heard the words “joy” and “rejoicing” throughout the readings), for today we reflect on the joy that will come with the birth of Christ in our lives. Some say the first two weeks of Advent are to focus on the hope for our future, and these next two weeks, we concentrate more on the birth and coming of Jesus. And naturally, the birth story emphasizes the Virgin Mary, a poor and lowly servant whom God chose for the special role of mother and Christ bearer to us. Isaiah had prophesied, “the desert shall blossom as the rose at the coming of God.” And indeed, today we heard what is known as The Magnificat, or “The Song of Mary”, her thankful response to God’s using her in his divine plan, and we light the third and rose colored candle as part of this remembrance.
I am grateful to have Advent and this rose candle today. This season is so full—full of traditions, lessons, symbols, and people -- people who have gone before us and blessed us by their choices and responses to God’s calling. I need this time and these reminders to pause and to consider the special meaning and value of each of them in God’s plan and to rejoice in them. In the midst of simultaneously preparing and waiting, I can easily forget what was and is necessary in preparing the way for Christ, and instead look forward too soon to Christmas. It helps me in the waiting process to have markers — some indicators or awareness of where I am in the process, what I’m doing, what I’m called to do and the remaining time I must wait expectantly.
I don’t think I’m alone here …
Who hasn’t once said or at least heard “How much longer until we get there?” Or, “How many more days until it is Christmas?”
And in fact, it isn’t just waiting for Christmas that challenges us. It might be awaiting a birth in our own family, healing, even wondering how much longer we or a family member have left —“How much longer, Doctor?”
And how many can remember how long it seemed until our first driver’s license, first date, graduation …
Waiting --- it isn’t infrequent, or unknown, or unusual … and still it isn’t easy. Often as we look back, we marvel at how the wait wasn’t even that long, but it sure felt long at the time. For we often feel more ready than we are, focusing on the end result, forgetting that change is taking place as we wait, and that formation is a process that takes time and design. Preparation is often a course of opening up and being shaped in accordance to a purpose, perhaps not of our design, but most often one greater than we can imagine and one in accordance with God’s vision and will for us.
Today’s Old Testament reading from Isaiah tells us that the Lord our God was about to create new heavens and a new earth, a new people and in fact new ways of life — an end to distress and suffering, and to the short and fruitless lives they were experiencing. And there would be rejoicing, and the people would be glad, and they would be a delight to God. In this new time, there would be peaceful co-existence and God would hear the people’s needs before they even finished speaking and would answer them in fact before they called to him. He knew their needs then and he knows them now, even before we ask.
“What are you making? What are you doing? When will you be finished?”
As a child persistently asks these questions of a parent, so we at least ponder these in our heart as we read Scripture and pray, and we hear a patient and loving, “Wait and see.” These are challenging words to those of us who often have our own agendas and timetables running our lives. And yet, the canticle “The Song of Mary” tells us that Mary rejoiced for the “Almighty God had done a great thing for her and she proclaimed his greatness.” And she trusted. She trusted in his mercy, in his care for her and for the people of Israel and his promises to them.
Like John, who baptized and witnessed to the light of the Lord …and knew he himself was not the light, but that his purpose was to testify to that light, we too, have a purpose in God’s creation. And like John, whose baptismal ministry was for a particular point in time and for a part in a plan larger than him — we have an identity as Christians, Christ’s people and disciples here in this community, and we, too, have a role.
A favorite book of mine is “The Reed of God”, by Caryll Houselander, and in it, the author explains that each piece of creation is carefully chosen, shaped over time and experience for a particular function in service to creation. Like the reed, carved, and drilled into a musical instrument used by the shepherd; or the straw, cut and shaped into a nest to provide a home for a bird or maybe a lining for a newborn’s bed in a manger; or a lump of metal, fired, hammered, and shaped into a chalice to bear and then pour out the love of Christ to his people, we too, are here for a purpose.
God’s plan, promise, and purpose continue to this day as we await his coming again. We, his creation, continue to move onward journeying through our age, seeking meaning and purpose in our own lives, yet connected to those who’ve gone before us. We prepare, and wait, and then finally celebrate and re-enact Christ’s birth and coming each year. And often, we feel impatient and restless, not even realizing that in our “waiting” and then rejoicing, we are participating in our own creation and formation as his people and are becoming evermore a part of the new life and light he is bringing to the world.
My time here with you these few months as a student -- being formed for service as a deacon in the church – is coming to an end, and I am grateful for the opportunity to see a new creation at work right here. Whether individuals clarifying their call for this time and choosing new ways to serve, the coming together and ordering of two ministries into new unified ones, or the exploring of past identities and moving forward as one body of Christ, possibly even with a new name, I have seen the hand of the Creator at work and his light reflected in your midst. Paul’s instructions to the people of the church at Thessalonica were given that they and the church would be strengthened and grow in his absence. He knew that founders begin the work and that others are called to continue it. His words are as relevant today as then. By being patient, faithful, and most importantly, listening and praying constantly to know what is good and true and the will of God, the church is strengthened and reflects a new way of life to the world around it.
Like waiting, being formed isn’t easy or quick work, and it isn’t painless. Whether it is Mary saying yes and bearing the Christ child; John preparing the way and then joyfully decreasing and ending his baptismal ministry; Jesus taking human form and coming to us; and yes, even our assuming new roles and identities, creation means we do not remain the same. We yield to change and release our tightly held grip on what was, is now, and what is known and familiar to us. We are called to unfold ourselves from our sometimes cramped but protective positions, and we stretch and open up to what is new and full of hope. And suddenly, like children trying to fit into last year’s Christmas pajamas, we see that we have grown. And sometimes our roles decrease as we discover our purpose has been fulfilled while another’s may increase as a part of God’s plan. Because we are human, we may shed a nostalgic tear or two for what was, but we also know in our hearts that we never lose what was essential and good. Instead, we incorporate it into our new being and purpose. And we, with God’s help and direction and promptings, accept our new being, our blessings and new calls with glad and grateful hearts, trusting they are from heaven and are according to his will. And we rejoice! And we go forth… to share the joy of Christ’s coming to us, and to the world. Amen.
Sermon for St. Michael’s and
Incarnation Episcopal Churches
By The Rev. Martha Frances+
Yr.
B, Advent II
Text:
Mark 1:1-8
Other: Isaiah 40: 1-11; Psalm 85: 7-12; 2 Peter 3:
8-15a, 18
Every time I read the beginning of Mark, I have to restrain the old
English teacher in me. I want to
take my red pencil out. What did
Mark the evangelist think he was doing, starting out his whole gospel with a
sentence fragment? Listen once
again: “The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” No verb; it’s all subject. Sounds more like a title, doesn’t it?
A closer look shows us that these few words tell us a lot about this
book, the 1st gospel written &, in fact, the 1st time
this genre or kind of literature has been written down. Mark uses the word “gospel” to let the
readers know that this is not a life of Jesus like a biography. In fact, there’s not even a birth story
like we find in Matthew & Luke.
Mark is in a big hurry to tell the gospel of salvation, the stories
about Jesus’ ministry which had been circulating orally for several years. In fact, only here is Jesus Christ
used; generally, Mark uses the term “Christ” only after Jesus’ ministry &
then his death & resurrection.
Some manuscripts omit the term “Son of God,” but this phrase is a
pivotal confession in Mark & so is used here first. Mark wants to shout to the entire world
the good news of God’s love has come to humans in the form of God’s son Jesus.
Mark tells us the
quote is from Isaiah, but it’s actually a combination of Isaiah, Malachi, &
Exodus. Regardless, it assures us
that God’s new revelation of love to the people is in the prophetic tradition
of the Old Testament covenant with
Here
we find this strange John the baptizer emerging in the wilderness, in strange
dress & with an even weirder diet, preparing the way for Jesus to come into
the lives of the Jewish people.
John offers hope to the people, since in the wilderness, they are
totally dependent upon God just as the Hebrew people had been in the desert when
Moses led them out of
Sometimes
John’s message doesn’t sound like very good news—all that talk of repentance
& sins sounds like a bummer!
But then people must first be aware of & be convicted of their sins
before they realize they need a savior.
A pre-condition of faith in God is when we abandon the notion that we can
save ourselves & recognize that God is able to do for us what we cannot do
for ourselves.
John’s
baptism was one calling the common people not only to recognize their
sinfulness but also be willing to let God remove those character defects &
unhealthy behaviors. Repentance
means “to change one’s mind,” but it comes from an earlier Hebrew word meaning
“to turn around.” When a person
turns 180 degrees, he or she has a totally new perspective. This “turning around” means a change of
heart, but it also includes a change of will & conduct. Here’s where the rubber meets the road,
so to speak. John’s call to
repentance means a person is sorry enough for what he or she has done not to do
it again. John is offering people
the opportunity to make that change in order to be ready for the salvation that
Jesus will offer.
If
sin is a rupture in relationship, a separation, then forgiveness of sin makes
way for a new relationship. That
may be clearing the way to communion with God, feeling at peace with oneself,
or living in a healthy relationship with our neighbors. All of us have some relationship in our
lives which is not what we would wish it to be, or at least not what God wishes
it to be. Let’s remember who does
what here: John preaches &
baptizes, the people sin & repent, but God is the one who forgives. Now we all know that we will sin again,
but when we’re in the love & care of God & involved with a Christian
community in becoming disciples, then we are more likely to live into the
turning around which we call repentance.
This journey takes a lifetime, but someone once said that the longest
journey begins with a single step.
John the Baptist invited his followers—& invites us—to begin the
faith journey to Jesus’ feet.
Mark
perhaps exaggerates when he says that people from all the Judean countryside
& indeed all the people of
At
this Advent, we’re called once again to take stock of our lives, to recognize
our sins, acknowledge them in confession, be reconciled & then move into
Christmas open to whatever Christ has for us in the new creation. That’s why we encourage each of you to
carve out for yourself during these next 3 weeks some quiet time for reflection
& recollection, preparing to turn around & proceed to Jesus’ feet for
him to be Lord of your lives. If
the sins which trouble you are blocking your ability to experience God or God’s
reaching out to you, then I urge you to make an appointment with me for private
confession. It’s nothing to be
afraid of, & many of us have learned that our intent to live a new life is
dependent upon our telling someone else the exact nature of our wrongs. Just so you’ll know, after the
confession, I pronounce God’s absolution, & I encourage you to make those
changes in your life which will reinforce your desire not to return to that
sin. If there are those in this
community who haven’t been baptized, I encourage you to consider experiencing
that ancient entrance rite into the Christian community on the 8th
of January, our next baptismal Sunday.
On that day, we will all renew our baptismal vows once again. Even after baptism, most of us find
that from time to time we continue to have to tell God & another human
being the exact nature of our faults & get some spiritual guidance in
leading turned-around lives.
The
point of new lives, of course, is to keep growing in Christ’s light, which
means changed behaviors. It’s a
scary thing to change because it’s new & we’re often frightened of anything
new, but it’s necessary if we want to maintain a fit spiritual condition. There have been so many changes around
this church in the last 9 months that, while you may recognize their necessity
as we combine churches, your emotions may be balking at the unfamiliar feel of
church. It’s not business as usual
this Advent, is it? Acknowledging
the discomfort which change brings allows our hearts to be accepting of the new
as well as the growth in ourselves.
Finally,
do you sometimes feel unworthy in your life. Look at John’s situation: he doesn’t feel worthy to baptize Jesus, yet he does so at
Jesus’ insistence. He looks
forward to Jesus in hope & not backward. John recognizes his limitations yet refuses to give up
because of them. He realizes that
Jesus’ baptism with the Holy Spirit will afford people a new order, a new way
of living in relationship with God.
And he graciously makes a path straight in the desert for the coming of
the Messiah, preparing out of the rough places a plain.
This
2nd Sunday in Advent is an excellent time to take stock, let go, be
obedient to God’s call, look for those places in our lives which need
amendment, & go about preparing a way in your heart for the coming of the
baby Jesus as well as the risen Christ as the Lord of your life. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. . . .
Sermon for St. Michael’s and Incarnation Episcopal Church
By The Rev. Martha Frances+
Year B, Advent I
Visioning Meditation
Text: Mark 13: [24-32]
33-37; Isaiah 64: 1-9a
Other:
Psalm 80: 1-7; I Corinthians 1: 1-9
Our gospel reading today
cautions us to keep awake because
only God knows the day or hour.
That is the theme for Advent really: keep awake; stay alert; wait &
watch. Sometimes I know we would
like for God—as the Isaiah passage suggests—to tear open the heavens & come
down to make God’s way known to all nations. It would certainly be easier, we all think, if God would
just tell us clearly what to do & then, of course, we would do it. Right? Then we wouldn’t need to worry about having faith at all,
would we?
Yet God calls us to
believe & to discern God’s will for our community as well as for our daily
lives. God calls us to proclaim
the Gospel by word & example, & we as a church community make a
commitment to do our part in sharing the incredible love of God through Jesus
Christ to all we possibly can. At
this time of year, we look forward to the coming of the Christ child but also
to Christ’s 2nd coming in glory. What better time is there, as we prepare for the rebirth of
our own joined community, for us to imagine what God would have us be & do
in the next few years?
Today we begin a process
which will help us articulate how we believe God wants us to proceed. You have been given a series of
brightly colored cards for your input, but I’d like to ask you first to enter
into a meditation. I’ll encourage
you to close your eyes & get comfortable. Be still.
Breathe in & out naturally.
Say a prayer that God will give you God’s vision for St. Michael’s &
Incarnation in the year 2010. That
is 5 years from now.
It is the year 2010; for
the past 5 years, our congregation has taken seriously its mission to carry the life & love of Jesus Christ
to the world. We have been
more effective than ever before in doing these things, creating new ways &
enhancing some of our on-going ministries here at our church. It is a new time, with a new &
invigorated spirit about our congregation.
It is late fall, a
beautiful Sunday morning—one of those days when a light breeze is blowing out
of the north. You are driving down
You walk up the main
walkway & in the doors of the visitor’s reception area. Is someone there to greet you? How does that person greet you? Look around in the narthex. What do you see? Are there any visitors here, & how
are they being greeted? You are
here just in time for Sunday school.
You decide to walk around the facility this morning to see what is going
on. You walk into the parish hall
& are thrilled to see what is happening. Who is there & what are they preparing to do? You enter the kitchen & observe a
servant ministry going on. What is
happening in there? And why?
You look inside several of
the rooms. What do you see? How many children are there? How many adults are there with them? What has inspired all these people to
be here this morning? You continue
to the next room. How many
teenagers do you see? What are
they doing together? Imagine you
are a parent of one of these teens.
How do you feel about the ministry to your teen here? Do you want to join them?
This church says its
values are our education, our children, our faith, our community, and
our history. You go back into the parish hall & notice adults
grouped together for activities.
How many groups of adults do you see? You value our
Education which is equipping people of all ages with the Gospel to grow in
spirit, mind, & body. What
sorts of activities are supporting that value? What has changed at this church over the past 5 years to
create this learning environment for
adults, for families, & for singles?
How many people do you see?
What are their ages? What
creative ministry has brought them to this place at this time? What are those life-enriching
ministries for young adults, families, & seniors?
We also value our children & nurture them as an
integral part of our congregation & as our future by providing them with a
safe place to learn & to worship.
We give them the facilities & ministries needed to assert their
faith to family & friends, to the greater community, & to God. You visit the nursery. How many babies & toddlers are here
today? What ministries are taking
place for these wee folks? Are
there more children here than there were 5 years ago? If so, what ministries have brought their parents to this
church?
Look out one of the
windows. Has anything changed in
the past 5 years? Do you see a
playground? What does it look
like? Are children & adults
enjoying that space? You go
outdoors & walk around the campus.
What does it look like this fine day?
Time has flown, & it
is time for worship. You quickly
walk to the narthex. Who is in
there? How many ushers &
greeters do we need to handle the number of people? You enter the church proper. How full are the pews?
You value our faith where we are a diverse Christ-centered
community grounded in the Bible, prayers, & liturgy. We empower faith by nurturing spiritual
growth & renewal through education, worship, outreach & prayer. What will the worship be like
today? What kind of music do you
hear? How does it sound? Who is included in the choir? How many music groups do we have? Is there musical diversity? Does it relate to those in the
community? The service has
begun. What is the spirit in this
place? What activities &
ministries does this congregation provide that help create that spirit? Is this space used for any other
worship experiences during the week?
If so, what type are they?
The service is over &
you return home. But you know you
will return this week for one of the mid-week ministries taking place
here. You value our community where we cherish our
congregation as an extended family.
We provide a stable, safe place for worship & fellowship. We cultivate a diverse Christian
community where all are welcome, & all are encouraged in their journey with
God. What are those
life-enriching ministries for your church family? What goes on here during weekdays? What does the day school look like these days? How many children attend? How about week nights? Is the level of activity about the same
or increased since 2005? What
ministries are being offered? What
has changed at the church in the planning & arranging for mid-week
ministries since 2005?
Not only is the building
being utilized, but groups from the church also meet in homes. How many in the congregation are
involved in home groups? What do
they do when they meet? Are there
any other places in the community where members of the church gather? If so, what do they do when they get
together?
Think about the ways
ministries at our church are administered. It is the year 2010.
How big is our congregation now?
We had an average attendance of about 85 on Sundays in 2005. Is it about the same now? How many paid staff does the church
have to help administer these ministries, both full & part time? What are the positions & why do we
need them? How effective are they
in organizing & empowering the people to utilize their gifts for ministry?
Our
church has worked hard at developing its outreach ministries. We are a congregation of leaders both
in the
When you are ready, you
may open your eyes.
On the yellow card, we ask
you to include traditions, celebrations, & events from either church which
you want to see us continue in our new parish community. The red card is for you to note what
pains or concerns you feel we need to deal with as we join. Your dreams for the future of this
community will be placed on the blue card. Finally, you may include your choice of a name for the new
church on the green card. Please turn in your cards by the 11th of
December. We want your input in
our new parish.
The Reverend Martha Frances
Year A, Pentecost 26, Proper
28
Other: I Thessalonians 5: 1-10; Psalm 90: 1-8,
12; Zephaniah 1: 7, 12-18
When the man in this parable goes on a journey, he leaves three of his servants with a rather large amount of money for them to manage while he is gone. Now we are used to hearing the word “talent” to mean things we are capable of doing well, but that definition of talent actually arose because of this parable. In the parable itself, a talent is equivalent to about 15 years’ wages for a laborer. The servant who is entrusted with 10 talents has a real fortune, & even the one with one talent has—considering inflation—a lot more money than some of us have ever been able to accumulate at one time. The journeyer certainly had a lot of faith in these folks, for he gives them enough money to take care of themselves & also to make some profit for him by the time he returns. Of course, when the man goes on the journey, as far as we know, he gives them no instructions at all. They’re on their own.
What
would you do if you suddenly received a large amount of money? How about if you won the Lotto? Would the 10% tithe come off the top?
Hmmm. A very wise person once said
if we want to know what a person values, look at his or her checkbook &
agenda. Today it would be one’s
on-line banking printout & Palm Pilot, but the whole point is that what we
value is certainly revealed in how we spend our time & money. It’s a good exercise to try for
yourself sometime: what does our
time & financial expenditure say about what we really value?
Well,
Jesus tells us that the amount of the money given to each man was “according to
his ability,” which means that the man going on the journey had a pretty good
idea how each of the three would use the money. He expected some increase from them & rewarded the two
who made their money “work for them,” as is said in financial circles, &
lambasted the servant who buried his one talent by calling him wicked &
lazy. So much for taking the safe
road, right?
It’s
no secret that both Incarnation & St. Michael’s have suffered in the past
few years in the finances department, & our vestry watches our expenditures
pretty carefully. We do not have
spendthrifts inappropriately throwing money away. There are always ways we can be better stewards of our
financial resources, but we already run a pretty tight ship.
In
addition, many of our pledgers already give sacrificially, but I would imagine
many of us can stretch a little more to increase the ability of our combined
parish to minister effectively. 34
of our congregation pledged over $87,000 last week, & it isn’t too late to
turn in your 2006 pledge or even to increase it if God is urging you to share
more of your resources.
Also,
if we are able to invite those near to us to join us at this church, or to
become more active, & if we attract more of the neighborhood to our
community, there will be more of us to contribute to our own spiritual growth
as well as to contribute to & expand more ministries, becoming more vital
in this community.
But
I digress. . . .
But what else does this parable have to say to us
today? What is the Gospel calling
us to today?
As I’ve already indicated, it should certainly
encourage us to be giving, to the church & to other organizations in which
you believe, a portion of your income.
I was always moved when the Lord of the Streets parishioners made their
10% tithe. The Biblical tithe
helps us remember that all that we receive is because of God’s goodness, so our
returning 10% of it to do God’s work is a privilege, not a burden. It took me years to be willing to risk
tithing, & now, I can tell you that somehow, I don’t seem to have any less
to live on than all the years I said I couldn’t do it.
Secondly, the word “talent” in the way we usually
use it—an ability we’re particularly good at—is perhaps as important for us to
give generously of as our money.
Giving of yourself to this community as we launch into a new, combined
church is essential both for you & for all of us. At this time, in this community, you & I have a
wonderful opportunity to grow as disciples & to cooperate in the building
of this new community of which God is the architect.
The saddest part of the parable to me is that the
man who buried the one talent & didn’t try to make something of it probably
had many abilities that he didn’t ever learn about because he was too afraid to
take a risk. He even admitted that
to the journeyer. Why didn’t he
use the talent? He said, “I was
afraid.” I think that must have
been what made the journeyer so angry.
The man operated out of fear.
He wasn’t willing to take a chance on learning what he could do. God created us to grow & mature
& become more like God. Then
God sent Jesus to show us how to become more God-like, but sometimes we’re too
afraid. Jesus certainly didn’t
operate out of a spirit of fear, did he?
He risked even to his death, but he risked always in a spirit of
love. Surely, that’s what the
one-talent man was called to do, too.
As part of a growing Christian community, we can take risks with the
encouragement of folks who will stand beside us even if we fail & cheer
with us when we succeed.
In addition, I think we need to remember that Jesus
tells this parable as an encouragement for people who will live beyond his
death & resurrection. There’s
a certain urgency for them & us to remember that we’re called to live as if
the end were near. Of course, it was for Jesus. In the next chapter of Matthew, Jesus’ passion begins &
leads soon to his death. This
teaching is for his closest disciples, & he is reminding them that what he
is teaching them now, they must live out in the new creation, after his
resurrection & ascension. He
has an urgency about his parables which we see also in today’s epistle
passage. I’ll close with a few
comments about it.
Paul tells the Thessalonians that the day of the
Lord will come like a thief in the night, just as labor pains come upon a
pregnant woman. Paul wants to give
us some really vivid images, doesn’t he?
His advice? Keep awake
& be sober. Belong to the day,
not to the night. He then uses the
image of dressing for whatever we might encounter when he tells us to wear the
breastplate of faith & love & the helmet of the hope of salvation. Here we have the three virtues of the
Christian life: faith, hope, &
love. When we live into these
virtues, allowing Christ to strengthen faith, hope & love within us, then
we are able to live with Christ whether we’re in this world or the next. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring,
but both Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians & Jesus in his teaching to
his disciples encourage each of us to live today so that tomorrow will take
care of itself.
Each of us has been given talents, & we have a
community that can help us develop them to their fullest. Next Sunday, on the feast day of Christ
the King, we’ll share the past of both Incarnation &
Then Thursday week is Thanksgiving Day when we will
focus on our blessings. We will
celebrate with the other churches in this neighborhood next Sunday evening at
St. Matthew’s United Methodist at the community Thanksgiving Service. We’ll have our own Thanksgiving
Eucharist at the usual Wednesday evening hour of
Sermon for St. Michael's & Incarnation Episcopal
Church
The Reverend Martha Frances
9 October 2005
Year
A, Pentecost 21, Proper 23
Text: Matthew 22: 1-14
Other: Philippians 4: 4-13; Psalm 23; Isaiah 25:
1-9
When I was vicar at Lord of the
Streets, we had a motto: "Feed them
& they will come." We seldom
held an event without at least coffee & most of the time something to fill
the tummies of homeless people.
Celebration in most every society
involves feasting, doesn't it? What did we do the 1st Sunday we at Incarnation
& St. Michael's worshipped together?
We brought food & broke bread together, 1st in the Eucharist, & then
over in the parish house where we had a scrumptious pot luck luncheon. We've been eating together ever since &
will do so after the service again today.
In our lesson today from Isaiah, we
hear, "On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a
feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with
marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear." The shepherd in the 23rd Psalm praises God by saying, "You
spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me... my cup is
running over."
And the Gospel today tells of the king
who gives a wedding banquet for his son, complete with oxen & fatted calves
which have been slaughtered.
Feasting & partying seems the
focus of today's scriptures. When Matthew
tells the story of the wedding banquet, he likens it to the kingdom of
heaven. The kingdom of heaven is like
the king's giving a banquet for his son's wedding. In all these images of the good times, at the center is lavish
food.
The
kingdom of heaven is like a king's banquet, & all of us are invited, too. Obviously, the invitation to this banquet
was sent early, & lots of people returned the cards to say they would be
glad to come. When the banquet was
ready, the king sent the first set of slaves (which we are to presume were the
Old Testament prophets) to tell the guests that it was time to party, but by
then, they all had excuses that they couldn't come.
Ten
years ago yesterday, our son & his wife-now the parents of our precious
one-year-old granddaughter Amelia-got married at the outdoor altar at Camp
Allen. Following the ceremony everyone
traipsed over to the pavilion for a catered BBQ dinner. Prior to the wedding, we sent out invitations
complete with self-addressed, stamped envelopes so we would have an accurate
count for the caterer. About a week
before the nuptials, we phoned those who had not yet responded to see if they
were coming. People in our society take
"RSVP" rather casually.
Who
knows why the king's potential wedding guests didn't come? Another Gospel account says that one had
gotten married, another had to milk his cow, & still another had to plow
his fields. All these excuses sound
like incidents of bad planning to me.
Isn't it incredible that these folks have an invitation to dinner at the
White House & they have more important things to do?
Next,
the king sends another set of slaves, & they even describe the menu-these
slaves represent the Christian apostles, perhaps-but once again, the guests
can't be bothered. Some of the guests
even form a mob & riot, killing some of the slaves. Sounds more like a Super Bowl tailgate party
than a wedding banquet.
No
wonder the king is enraged. The king
really throws a tantrum at this point, & in his total frustration to
provide the greatest party this kingdom has ever seen, he invites everyone from
the highways & byways to come to the banquet. All are included. Can't
you just hear the king declare, "Let the celebration begin!"
As
the king wanders through the crowd, he finds this grouch who has obviously not
caught the gaiety of the occasion. Now,
no one in the highways & byways had time to put on their party clothes, but
this old guy didn't even clean the mud off his boots when he came in the
door. Still has his gimme hat on. So the king asks him if he's ready to
celebrate & the guy doesn't even honor him with a response. This exchange reminds us that, when
blessings come our way, we need to accept them instead of complaining that the
menu isn't exactly what we expected.
Well,
that's the parable. Let's look at what
this story might say to us. On &
off in our lives, we've probably been offered opportunities we didn't take
advantage of: more education, a job, a
healthy choice for ourselves & our families. Do you remember what made you turn that offer down? Whatever the cause, God called us to come
join the party, but we were doing our own thing & couldn't be
bothered. Perhaps we've been given several
opportunities to choose God's banquet over the junk food of the world around us
& we've turned God down. Perhaps we
didn't think we were good enough, or we were too wrapped up in the ways of the
world to think God's banquet would be much fun. So we said no thanks. Or
we simply didn't reply at all.
What
does God do? God simply doesn't give up
on us. God sends more slaves to invite
us again, & encourages us to bring our friends with us. God wants us all at
the banquet table; God wants us all to celebrate with God's son. Do you notice that the bride is never
mentioned? Probably because WE'RE the
bride-the church community is just that important-we're necessary to make the
wedding party complete.
Mostly,
God wants us to leave our old lives behind.
We'll get new wedding garments when we come to God's table-& they'll
fit just right even tho we might have to get used to wearing such fine
clothing.
The
real banquet will be spread before you in just a few minutes, right here in the
church. The real banquet is the Lord's
Supper, the Communion, the Mass, usually called in the Episcopal Church, the
Eucharist. The food for everlasting
life is offered for all every Sunday morning right here at Christ's table, the
altar table. We have an altar call to
all each week when we invite you to come forward to receive the body &
blood of Christ which he gave for all of us, for you & for me, to nourish
us so that we can go out there in the world & live the way Christ showed
us.
In some church communities, Communion is infrequent,
& the teaching is that you have to go through certain actions to be worthy
to receive the body & blood. I
understand & respect that view of Holy Communion.
We
Episcopalians also believe that proper preparation of the heart for Eucharist
is important, & that is why we listen & respond to the Holy Scripture,
stand to affirm our faith together in the words of the Creed, & then ask
God's forgiveness in the General Confession.
When I offer the words of absolution, they are in God's name, & I
encourage you to believe that you are truly forgiven. You see, you're not worthy.
Neither am I. Of our own strength, none of us is worthy. That's why we're having the banquet. Jesus Christ took care of all that. Jesus died for those sins of unworthiness
& then was raised again, conquering death, calling us with him to rise to
new life.
After
we are assured of forgiveness, we're called to put our past transgressions
aside & ACT forgiven. The most
immediate way for us to do that is to turn to our neighbors-also forgiven in
Christ-to share God's peace with them.
If we have been at odds with anyone in the congregation, it is
particularly important to pass the peace with that person-letting go of all
that separates us from behaving like a redeemed & restored community.
That's
why God is giving the banquet.
Remember, it's for the Son's wedding.
Beginning with the offertory, we celebrate the Service of the Table, the
Love Feast of Jesus the Christ. We're all invited to come & receive so that
we might have strength for the Christian journey on which Jesus sends us
out. Who are we to turn God down? Will we be like those who were invited but
who had other things to do & didn't bother to come? Or will we come to the
feast to gain nourishment for the journey?
We
Episcopalians really like to party, so we close our service & go on over to
the parish house for some more Christian fellowship in Holy Coffee Hour. Today, I've asked that the whole community
join with Bill's & my family to celebrate his 60th birthday, so please come
& be part of our joyful celebration.
As we leave the gathered worship today, &
every Sunday or Wednesday if you come to our weekday Eucharist, we go out into
the world of our daily lives enriched to share with others through our living
faithfully the love & grace with which Christ has nurtured us. We're the scattered community, but we're
still community nonetheless. In the
General Thanksgiving prayer from the Daily Offices, we ask God to "give us
such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show
forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our
selves to your service." St.
Francis quipped to his friars, "Go & preach the Gospel. If necessary, use words." Live your faith, my friends. Live fully & abundantly each day-that's
YOUR sermon.
Sermon for St. Michael’s
& Incarnation Episcopal Church
The Reverend Martha Frances
Year A, Pentecost 18, Proper 20
Others: Psalm 145: 1-8; Jonah 3: 10-4:11
At Executive Board at
When her baby was born, his father managed to
provide a room for them until he lost his job, & then she wandered through
the shelter system until she’d spent all her allotted time in the few shelters
available to mothers with children.
Last year on Memorial weekend, a disturbance at
What parent among us when comforting a child who has
just come in 2nd in a talent or athletic contest or didn’t make the
cut for the fraternity or team—whatever competition had subjective
judging—hasn’t told the son or daughter the judges simply didn’t recognize true
quality?
It’s never the person who bought the appliance just after the price is lowered who
complains, is it?
And in Jesus’ parable of the “generous
employer”—usually named “the workers in the vineyard”—the folks who worked an
hour or 2 & got paid a full day’s wage didn’t squawk that the landowner was
unfair, did they? As they headed
off to the bank—or the pub—or the racetrack, they may have joked that the boss
had gone a bit daft, but they didn’t rush back to return the overpayment
either.
Throughout the centuries, this parable has baffled
people in the pews & scholars alike because we’ve cut our teeth—at least in
this country—on fairness. Justice
to us is about getting our just desserts, & it’s fine for the boss to cut
our colleague a little slack as long as we get similar preferential treatment.
Our children expect the pieces of pie to be exactly
the same size & their desire not to leave anyone out at a birthday party
has led many of us parents to spend much more than originally planned at
Chuck-E-Cheese’s in order for Sally not to have to choose only 3 best friends
out of 6, or is it 9?
Lest we be deluded to presume our overdeveloped
sense of fairness is an affliction only of the young, observe a family of
several “adult” children flock to the attorney’s office for the reading of the
will, & then follow them to the family home where they divide the family
heirlooms.
We fine upstanding Christian Americans truly
understand the grumbling of the folks who worked all day in the sun yet were
paid only a days’ wage, the same amount the landowner paid those Johnny-come-latelys
who just worked an hour. This
boss’s profligate generosity is just hard to take, isn’t it? And how would we get anything done in
the real world if bosses acted like this?
Everyone would want to slack off till the last minute if they’re all being
paid the same. What a way to run a
world!
Yet Jesus told this parable exactly because it, like
any good parable, throws together 2 very unlike ideas & challenges or
upsets conventional values at their intersection. Try as we might to make God the bookkeeper, God absolutely
refuses to be limited to what is just & fair. God seems to have great pleasure in spreading generosity
around not just to the “insiders” but to everyone. Notice that the early-morning workers don’t object to what
they receive but that others who didn’t earn it made an equal amount to their
take-home pay. It is their
objection to others’ good fortune
which alienates them from others & from God. They want to be recipients of grace which is amazing but get
their noses bent out of shape if someone they consider undeserving receives
that amazing grace.
The darndest thing about it is that Jesus indicates
that those who worship God are expected to imitate God’s generosity. This isn’t a new concept with Jesus,
really, for the Hebrew scriptures depicted the creator God who was good, saw
the world as good & humans as very good.
In fact, those who have chosen our lectionary
selections have provided a classic example of one who got downright peeved at
God for wanting to give the Ninevites a chance at redemption. There’s more to the Jonah story than
his getting swallowed by a whale—or a Texas-sized fish—& then miraculously
getting spit out on the ground once he’d learned his lesson. God wanted the people of
God receives us today, also; all of us. God truly is gracious & full of
compassion, slow to anger & of great kindness. God expects us to mirror God’s own behavior, & as we
accept such amazing grace & joyfully pass it along, we’ll grow into the
community which God is calling us to be.
Are we here at St. Michael’s & Incarnation willing to give God’s
amazing grace a chance? I believe
we’re on the way to just such generosity.
Thanks be to God!