Why is it that we treat “OTHER” religious groups with such disdain these days. When an opposing view is expressed there is a shiver that often runs up our spine. We run away quickly from the possibility of co-mingling our ideals with those of someone who sees the world a bit differently from us. Why is that? What has happened to our confidence?

I have absolute respect for any religious or non-religious person. I like to think that my Oxford professor was right when he said, “I  will teach you what I think is the truth…and if you disagree, then buy me a pint and I will listen to your position on the matter”.

I would love to see our world move back in the direction of an open and confident posture where the thing which unites all of us in the profound “LOVE OF NEIGHBOR”. On that, we are in complete agreement. Issues of theology seldom are the source of pain and division in our relgious bodies….no, instead we argue over expenditures, contracts, roofs, trees, and subjective declarations about what constitutes best liturgical practice.

Perhaps today will be the day when we focus on the good…on that which we share….on that which unites….rather than spending one more minute pointing our fingers at anyone else. Well, at least that is my prayer today.

A college professor, an avowed Atheist, was teaching his class.

He shocked several of his students when he flatly stated he was going to prove there was no God.

Addressing the ceiling he shouted: “God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I’ll give you 15 minutes!”

The lecture room fell silent. You could have heard a pin fall.

Ten minutes went by. Again he taunted God, saying, “Here I am, God. I’m still waiting.”

His count-down got down to the last couple of minutes when a Marine – just released from active duty and newly registered in the class – walked up to the professor, hit him full force in the face, and sent him tumbling from his lofty platform.

The professor was out cold! At first, the students were shocked and babbled in confusion. The young Marine took a seat in the front row and sat silent.

The class fell silent…waiting.

Eventually, the professor came to, shaken he looked at the young Marine in the front row. When the professor regained his senses and could speak he asked: “What’s the matter with you? Why did you do that?”

“God was busy. He sent the Marines.”

We can now tell everyone where we are going. We had to wait to identify the parish until a formal announcement could be made there. Well, that announcement has been made and it is now official. We are heading in early 2010 to WOKINGHAM ENGLAND. Caroline will be the Associate Priest at All Saints Church. http://www.webjam.com/all_saints_church_wokingham

This parish is actually in the Eastern edge of the Diocese of Oxford, sitting very near to the Northwestern edge of the Diocese of Guildford in Surrey and just Southwest of the Diocese of London. If you know where Heathrow airport is then think seven o’clock about 20 miles.

Wokingham, Berkshire
UK

maps.google.com

I ask your prayers for this time of transition…prayers for my family, the people of All Saints, and the people of St. James’. We continue to pray that in putting our lives into the hands of God, good will come to all. We thank God for answered prayers and for the possibility of faithful service.

Breakfast at McDonald’s 
  
This is a good story and is true, please read it all the way through until the end! (After the story, there are some very interesting facts!):

I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree.

The last class I had to take was Sociology.

The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last project of the term was called, ‘Smile.’ The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions. I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I thought this would be a piece of cake, literally. Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to McDonald’s one crisp March morning.  It was just our way of sharing special playtime with our son.  We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then Even my husband did. I did not move an inch… an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me as I turned to see why they had moved.  As I turned around I smelled a horrible ‘dirty body’ smell, and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men.  As I looked down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was ’smiling’  His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God’s Light as he searched for acceptance. 
 
He said, ‘Good day’ as he counted the few coins he had been clutching. The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation. I held my tears as I stood there with them.  The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted.  He said, ‘Coffee is all Miss’ because that was all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be warm).  Then I really felt it – the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes.  That is when I noticed all eyes in the  restaurant were set on me, judging my every action. 

I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the table that the men had chosen as a resting spot. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman’s cold hand.  He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes, and said, ‘Thank you.’  I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, ‘I did not do this for you. God is here working through me to give you hope.’ 
 
I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son. When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, ‘That is why God gave you to me, Honey, to give me hope..’ We held hands for a moment and at that time, we knew that only because of the Grace that we had been given were we able to give. We are not church goers, but we are believers.  That day showed me the pure Light of God’s sweet love. 
 
I returned to college, on the last evening of class, with this story in hand. 
 
I turned in ‘my project’ and the instructor read it. Then she looked up at me and said, ‘Can I share this?’ I slowly nodded as she got the attention of the class. She began to read and that is when I knew that we as human beings and being part of God share this need to heal people and to be healed. In my own way I had touched the people at McDonald’s, my son,the instructor, and every soul that shared the classroom on the last night I spent as a college student. 
 
I graduated with one of the biggest lessons I would ever learn: 
 
UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE. 

Much love and compassion is sent to each and every person who may read this and learn how to

LOVE PEOPLE AND USE THINGS -

NOT LOVE THINGS AND USE PEOPLE.

Purchase Tickets Now Online!

I enjoyed sneaking into the back of the theatre to see a small bit of the music man in rehearsal….it actually looks fantastic. Some of the boys came out around 8:45pm and put on their costumes and plaid was everywhere…and straw hats. I think it will be a terrific show and I am so excited to see Chloe singing and dancing in one of the leading roles. She also just discovered that she will be the Fairy Godmother in Cindrella the Musical, the Spring performance at Carl Sandburg. It is amazing to see your child growing and blooming in life and this seems to be just the beginning. I hope that any of you will consider joining me and we shall be marching down the aisles.  

http://mvcct.org/

The Music Man

Book, Music and Lyrics by Meredith Willson

Story by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey

Directed by Frank Pasqualino

Musical Direction by Cathy Manley

November 13, 14, 20 and 21 at 7:30 PM

November 15 and 22 at 3:00 PM

Carl Sandburg Middle School

8428 Fort Hunt Road, Alexandria, VA

One of the most beloved of all Broadway musicals, The Music Man tells the story of traveling salesman, Harold Hill.  He arrives in River City, Iowa in 1912 and with his fast-talking style, the  ”Professor” convinces the town that unless they adopt his revolutionary music program, their youngsters will be forever doomed. Parents are conned into buying instruments and expensive uniforms and chaos ensues as Hill’s credentials are questioned and he is called upon to prove himself.  The Music Man won numerous Tony Awards in both 1958 and 2000, and film versions include the 1962 classic and a 2003 a television version featuring Matthew Broderick and Kristin Chenoweth.

When building a fire on a cold Fall day you first have to start with the most combustable object in the fire….the

Love your neighbor as yourself

newspaper. Sheet by sheet we scruntch up paper and create a mound of paper. Next we take kindling and place a few pieces on the paper. This is very dry small pieces of wood which will usually catch fire easily after the paper burns. And then we place three or four logs on the kindling, ususally split, so they will catch from the kindling as it burns. We light the paper and the fire finds its way to a full blaze where the warmth fills the room.

As I watched my fire burn this morning I thought about other things in life that people set alight. How they go about building fires and setting them. The cable news seems intent on splitting every phrase spoken by someone until there is a way to say, “there is a pattern of behavior” and then the gloves can come off. They can say just about anything about this person by quoting “sources” and participate in the assasination of someon’s very character. Little bits of paper, igniting larger pieces of dried wood, to eventually bring the log into full flame. It works. We are good at burning stuff.

Our Lord teaches us that our pleasure should not come from the burning things down but rather from building things up. If we are enjoying the daily attacks on people or are participating in the undermining of another, then we should step back and find out what it is that is motivating this behaviour. If we watch it on TV or listen to it on the radio, then we should change the channel. If our workplace is filled with backstabbing, and deceit, then we should stand up for what is right.

Perhaps the words of the great commandment will fill our ears and hearts the next time someone lights a fire under us…perhaps those same words will fill our ears the next time we think of striking a match and lighting a fire under someone else. If we hear that voice, and respond to it, then we will truly be a people ON FIRE for the one who calls us, equips us, and directs us.

By loving the unlovable, You made me lovable. – Augustine to God

Watching Out for Us

Jesus wants us to love God and others with our soul. The soul is that part of us that denies logic. It is a mystery. Loving with our souls goes beyond what people would consider as normal. We give forth our love because we want to and it probably makes no sense to outsiders.

 

During the course of earning her master’s degree, a woman found it necessary to commute several times a week from Victory, Vermont to the state university in Burlington, a good hundred miles away. Coming home late at night, she would see an old man sitting by the side of her road. He was always there, in sub zero temperatures, in stormy weather, no matter how late she returned. He made no acknowledgment of her passing. The snow settled on his cap and shoulders as if he were merely another gnarled old tree. She often wondered what brought him to that same spot every evening. Perhaps it was a stubborn habit, private grief or a mental disorder.

 

Finally, she asked a neighbor of hers, “Have you ever seen an old man who sits by the road late at night?” “Oh, yes,” said her neighbor, “many times.”

“Is he a little touched upstairs? Does he ever go home?” The neighbor laughed and said, “He’s no more touched than you or me. And he goes home right after you do. You see, he doesn’t like the idea of you driving by yourself out late all alone on these back roads, so every night he walks out to wait for you. When he sees your taillights disappear around the bend, and he knows you’re okay, he goes home to bed.”

 

Keith Wagner, Almost Heaven, adapted from Garret Keizer, Watchers in the Night

 

In the days of the circuit riders a minister was out riding one afternoon and came upon a man out working in his field.

“Fine day isn’t it?” the minister called out.

“Its fine for you”, the man replied, “All you have to do is ride around on that horse thinking about God all day long, while I have to sweat here in this field and then walk home afterward. I don’t think it is right you should have things so easy while I have to work so hard.”

“On the contrary”, the minister answered, “thinking about God is one of the most difficult things you can do.  And to prove it, I’ll give you this horse if you can think about God and nothing else for one minute.”

“You’re on,” said the man and immediately he sat down in silence.  Thirty seconds later he looked up at the minister, and said, “Does that include the saddle?”

Richard Fairchild, Not Far from the Kingdom of God.

Two thoughts today:

Empty seats on rollercoasters drive me crazy. When people are waiting in line, there should never be an empty seat. It also makes the coaster ride better when you have every seat filled with a person…weight!

Roller coasters are only really scary when you think that there will be a disaster and that it might crash. If you believe that the statistics show that you are safer on a 200 foot coaster than you are sitting near a coconut tree in Hawaii or crossing the street in any major city in the USA, then you can take the terror out of your heart and enjoy the thrill of the wind rushing by your ears.

How does that relate to anything else…..well…..empty pews in the church make the life of ministry more difficulty. There are less people to carry the weight of mission…less people to volunteer to take leadership in life changing activities. Less voices praising God in the singing of the hymns. A full church is something that benefits all of us…and there are people eager to get on board, if only we would let them.

The other thing has to do with the fear of not knowing where a church is going. Some folks would rather sit still on a lift hill than let the train hurdle out of control down the track. There are folks who stop the life of the church from a posture of fear. Fear of being truly out of control. They might think there position is a conservative one which is truly protecting the interest of the long term health of the institution, but in fact this sort of restrictive behavior often leaves people look for a more trusting environment in which to serve the Lord.

Fear and Fun….Praise and participation. Lessons for living life well….and getting the most out of a day of coaster riding.

Suggested Text: Luke 18:9-14
Lectionary Week: Proper 25  -  OT 28  -  Pentecost 19
======================================

Collect: Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18

I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

At my first defense no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Luke 18:9-14

Jesus told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, `God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, `God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

This past Wednesday I stood on the edge of a large hole in lower Manhattan. I peered through the fence at this place now known around the world as ground zero. It seemed in many ways as if time was standing still as a strained to see the destroyed roof tops and the many “scars” that could never go away from the horrible day when tragedy, again, struck this world.

 The Gospel lesson for this week resonated in my heart as I walked quietly and prayed….quietly, for answers to many of life’s big questions. I sat in St. Paul’s chapel, a place of respite and care for the thousands who worked night and day in the recovery efforts, and I thought of our place of peace and Grace here in Radford. I prayed for each of you….that you would be safe and near to those you love. There in St. Paul’s, that little church where not even a pane of glass had been broken despite standing only yards from the base of one of the towers (a real miracle!), the Holy Spirit was as real and as close as you could ever imagine.

 The Gospel lesson this morning is about GOING UP and COMING DOWN. It is about the way in which we live our lives and the way that God lives in us. The Pharisee seems interested in being seen as a devout man of prayer and the tax collector is only interested in the mercy of God.

 Pride gets in the way so often and so easily in our daily walk with God. Sometimes it takes tragedy to rip a hole in our heart before we realize our utter dependence on the Grace and strength that can only come from almighty God. I would testify that looking into that great hole was a glimpse into the broken heart of God. Seeing the displays at the exhibit at St. Paul’s was testimony that in fact God was indeed very near.

 Allow me to share a couple of examples from the displays in the chapel: On one side there was what appeared to be a large clothing rack covered in these bright colorful, rainbow-like chains. At first glance I thought they were strings of paper flowers, but upon closer inspection I realized they were origami peace cranes (just like the ones we made at Grace). I looked closer and was then blessed to discover from where these cranes had come. The children of schools in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, all of them direct descendants of the survivors of the nuclear bombs that struck Japan in the second WW, had folded these cranes as a symbol of solidarity and hope. They responded in love to perfect strangers offering symbols of HOPE & PEACE.

 As I sat in the third pew on the right I looked up to the balcony and noticed a banner there….Nothing spectacular about it. It was signed with hundreds of names. Then I looked at the side of the sign and realized it was sent (and signed) by members of the families and friends of the victims of the Oklahoma City bombing.

 Two relatively quiet acts of prayer, which today continue to touch literally thousands of people.

 That hole in the ground in lower Manhattan will one day be filled again. The construction has already begun. But the holes that exist around this world will never completely go away….Perhaps because people will allow their hearts to be filled with pride, and selfish ambition, and thoughtless directionless addiction. We are a fallen people…..and today and every day God gives us hope. Hope in the midst of our despair. God’s promise to us today is that we will indeed be “exalted” and (2 Tim. 4) “rescued from every evil attack”. I believe this to be true. It is my faith in God’s love that empowers me to rise from my bed in the morning with hope in my heart. It is my faith in the truth of Jesus’ death and resurrection that frees me to peer into the darkest pits of evil without losing hope in a day when death shall be destroyed.

 Going Up and Coming Down! Will you chose the faith-life of a Pharisee this day and go about with your hollow prayers and empty expectations? Or will you learn the faith of the tax collector…..A man who was surely a cheat, a thief, a man with no ethics – Jesus chooses a tax collector in this parable for the same reason he chose Samaritans in other parables in the Gospel – BUT…a man who discovered he was a sinner and needed transformation. He discovered that he could not live outside of the mercy of God.

 Sometimes things in us must be broken down to open us to the possibility of being built up in Christ. Perhaps our church is going through such a time. People are saying we cannot make it. We will split…There is a great divide in the middle of our denomination. And I say: Christ is not divided except that he is broken for us…but not so that we carry on in disunity, but so that we might be ONE. “We break this bread to share in the body of Christ. Though we are many we are ONE BODY, because we all share one bread!” This is our faith.

 Our country is also divided right now….Are you a Republican, a Democrat, Independent, or something else…or just fed up? Families and friends are fighting over issues and upcoming elections and people are talking about an America that is split. When that big hole opened up and swallowed up those two buildings in Manhattan there was little division….There was a natural outpouring of love and generosity. Where has that gone? Have we lost our way? Are we guilty of Phariseeism….walking about having all of the answers, self reliant, needing no one else, and always looking to be at the front of the line with all of the toys!

 On Tuesday this week as I walked through LaGuardia Airport I bumped into President Jimmy Carter as he was rushing to launch his new Novel. It caused me to begin thinking about important things and important people. The book I was reading had an account of another President written by former Secretary of Labor Raymond Donovan who was telling the story of being on Air Force One. He was in the back compartment of the jet while President Reagan was in the front of the compartment. The phone rang in the back compartment and the voice said, “Mr. Donovan, the president would like for you to join him for lunch.” Secretary Donovan straightened his tie and thought to himself how important he was to have the president of the United States ask him to lunch.

Just as Donovan walked through the doorway into the president’s compartment, the red phone rang, the Presidential Hot Line. Wow–what a moment to be present!, Donovan said. I really am important…and  President Reagan picked up the phone and said, “Yes—uh huh. Yes–what are my options’” …. Donovan’s heart almost stopped. His mind raced. Then President Reagan continued, “OK. I’11 have the iced tea!” And in that moment Donovan said his ego was thoroughly deflated.

Perhaps we would all be served to consider the ordinariness of even the most extraordinary people. Perhaps it would help us to better see ourselves as surely God must see us….riddled with holes and hurts, and longing for a “building up!” It seems that each step of my life since looking into Ground Zero has been filled with this sort of longing…This hunger to be REAL, and Refreshed…and to be a daily recipient of God’s mercy.

While waiting in the airport I was reading an Agriculture magazine which explained the process of harvesting wheat (The things we do when a flight is delayed!). There were pictures of the wheat fields and close ups of the plants….many of them standing tall and many bending over in the field as though about to die. The wonderful irony of the story was that the article said that the healthiest of the plants, the ones bursting with the most seeds, the ones with the most promise, the ones that will produce a rich harvest, are the ones that were pictured “bending low”. The ones standing the tallest are almost completely empty of seeds….What a perfect picture of humility!

Often times we become confused about where true spiritual substance is to be found. Many of us who are bent over with the weight of our lives must also realize that we are full of the hope that can indeed be baked into the very loaves this world is so hungry to eat. Jesus says, “come to me all ye that travail and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest!”

But the journey of the Christian pilgrimage is one filled with the temptation to take the easy way out….to come up with easy explanations….to come up with legalism to keep from struggling with the weight of decision-making….to become Christians who really have nothing to do with Jesus Christ (and the tough message he gives us!). Don’t follow rules, follow Jesus. Don’t allow the Bible to limit your perspective but allow it to be a catalyst of growth. Don’t use others but allow God to use you to serve others!

There is an ancient proverb that goes: “Live today like it might be your last, learn things like you might live forever”. I hope that when you go about your daily lives this day and this week and this month you will embrace the challenge to live for God….knowing that he came into this world to live and die for you.

And so may we exclaim with St. Paul one day “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” May God Unite us! And build us up as the Psalmist says, into a “strong tower….where the righteous come in and are saved!”

Going up and Coming Down! May this be a description of our prayers and our lives and God’s responsive Mercy and Grace.

 Amen.