For today's readings, click HERE.by Ruthie Darnell
In this reading, there’s an emphasis on judgment and how the people either believed or didn’t believe that Jesus was the Messiah. They compared Jesus to a set of standards that they had based on their interpretations of religious texts. Today, I think it’s easy to stick to your own interpretations and beliefs, especially when times are difficult. Certain events and experiences can cause people to have a closed mind and I believe that it’s easy to slip into a closed-mind perspective when there are hardships such as a worldwide pandemic. Certain groups get blamed, disparities in certain contexts are more exposed, and people are tense, making them more vulnerable to close their minds off and pass judgment on the things they see or hear. But during times of adversity, having an open mind is extremely crucial. We see things from other perspectives, we learn about what others are going through and in the process, we connect and become closer. Reflecting on the past year, adversity has been high and it’s been an eye-opener for me. I’ve learned that having an open mind is sometimes difficult, but as long as we try and put effort into this way of thinking, I believe that growth will occur. For today's readings, click HERE.For today's readings, click HERE.by Jennifer Wright
St. Patrick’s Day is a special day for many, although in this country, it is not generally considered a day for spiritual reflection and prayer. But today, I want to reflect upon the life and teachings of Patrick and how they apply to the challenges facing us today. Most of my information about Patrick in this reflection comes from How the Irish Saved Civilization, by Thomas Cahill (a book I highly recommend). Patrick was a Romanized Briton, living a fairly middle-class life as a teenager, until he was kidnapped by slavers and taken to Ireland to be a shepherd. He lived a terrible life for many years as a slave, but his sufferings served to turn him toward God. Finally, he was saved miraculously from slavery and returned to his home in Britain. After being ordained priest and bishop, Patrick followed God’s call and returned to Ireland, the land of his torment. He adopted the Irish as his own, bringing them to Christ and working for their well-being with great love all his life. According to Cahill, Patrick was “. . . the first human being in the history of the world to speak out unequivocally against slavery.” His leadership and teaching led to the end of the slave trade in Ireland. He spoke out powerfully against supposedly Christian kings who raided his people and sold them into slavery, with “. . . the chrism still fragrant on their foreheads.” "In sadness and grief, shall I cry aloud. O most lovely and loving brethren and sons whom I have begotten in Christ (I cannot number them), what shall I do for you? I am not worthy to come to the aid of either God or men. The wickedness of the wicked has prevailed against us. We are become as it were strangers. Can it be that they do not believe that we have received one baptism or that we have one God and Father? Is it a shameful thing in their eyes that we have been born in Ireland?" Patrick saw the world in a new way, different from the vision of most of his contemporaries. In the time of Patrick, the Irish were seen by Romanized cultures as barbarians, as basically at the level of animals. The world around him valued people differently depending on their cultural background and where they fit in the accepted hierarchy of worth. Patrick saw them all as his brothers and sisters, all of infinite value and equally beloved of God. He worked all his life to persuade and harangue the political and religious authorities of his day to let this radical view of the value and equality of all people shape and determine the actions and policies of nations and of the Church. What does Patrick have to teach us today? I (like many people) have in this past year been reflecting much on the besetting sin of racism in our country and our world, and even sadly in our Church. After studying all the evidence that the color of a person’s skin has an enormous effect on their chances in life in America – their education, their medical care, their employment, their purchase of a home, their access to justice, and their likelihood of being killed for no reason, among many other things – I am convinced that our pervasive sin of racism must be confronted and defeated with the same love, compassion, and outrage that Patrick brought to the fight against slavery. Patrick did not focus on condemning the individuals who engaged in the slave trade. He addressed the government and church institutions that made the slave trade possible and that profited from it. Similarly, we should not be focused on naming and blaming individuals as racist. We should be figuring out how to dismantle the systems that create racist outcomes. We must be motivated to do so, even when it means dismantling institutions and ways of living that are familiar and comfortable for those of us who experience the privileges of systemic racism. Patrick shows us where that motivation will come from – from truly loving and embracing everyone as our brothers and sisters, all of infinite worth and equally beloved of God. Then we will be unable to ignore or tolerate systems that do such terrible harm to our beloved brothers and sisters. Cahill states: "Patrick prayed, made peace with God, and then looked not only into his own heart but into the hearts of others. What he saw convinced him of the bright side – that even slave traders can turn into liberators, even murderers can act as peacemakers, even barbarians can take their places among the nobility of heaven." Amen and amen. May it be so. For today's readings, click HERE.by Emma Friend
When reading the gospel for this day, the lesson I gleaned was that finding supportive communities is vital to our wellbeing. In our current world, the concept of helping yourself and others is a relevant one. Especially with the rise of COVID-19 and other growing difficulties and injustices in the world, it’s important to find communities we can trust. The man in the Gospel who had been sick for thirty-eight years was not helped by the people in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate. He did not have a supportive community there. But he eventually found that, and found the help he needed, when Jesus came. One of the biggest things I like to preach is the importance of mutual aid. Simply put, mutual aid means giving what you can when you have extra, and in return, your community will give to you what they can when you have need. The “what” can be time, money, service, items, food, or many other things. I propose we let this reading motivate us to intentionally create the supportive communities that the sick man did not have, ones that thrive on mutual aid to help our neighbors, family, friends, and strangers when they are struggling or sick. For today's readings, click HERE.by Barb Hovey
March 15 was going to be one of those crazy, busy days. It was a Sunday so the day would start with choir rehearsal and church. I would have just enough time after church to catch lunch before a 2:00 pm matinee of the light opera I perform in each winter. A quick dinner, then a concert with my community concert band. I was going to be busy filling a day with things I love to do. Oh sure, I would be tired, but I would be satisfied. But I am talking about March 15, 2020 so there were changes coming. On Friday the 13th, the concert venue cancelled our band concert. Also on Friday, the opera company had a successful opening night. But we decided that we would close after Saturday’s show and cancel performances the final three weekends. When I got home from the theater on Saturday, I had an email from Karla saying she did not expect the choir on Sunday because we sit too close to each other during services. That crazy, busy Sunday became a crazy, eerily quiet Sunday. What was happening? How bad was this virus? One line of today’s psalm says “Weeping may spend the night, but joy comes in the morning”. It is too early to declare we have reached that joyful morning. But after the initial shock, we have shown resilience. We care for each other by keeping physical distance. We show our love for each other by maintaining social connections through phone calls, Zoom meetings, recorded church and parking lot services. It feels like an unusually long Lenten season. But we can take care of ourselves and each other. Soon there will be a glorious day when we can meet in church and open the box of Alleluias that has been patiently waiting under the altar. For today's readings, click HERE.by The Huntley Family
Dear God, Today we give thanks for all you have taught us and given us. We ask for your help in forgiving us for all of our sins and showing us how to do better. In your Holy Name, Amen. For today's readings, click HERE.by Marion Hunner
Reading today’s scripture, I am reminded of a Lent when my kids were young. Our Lenten practice that year was to read from their Story Bible each night. We had the perfect Story Bible, because each one was just two pages long (fairly large print, with pictures!). We surely missed some of the nuances of the actual scripture, but it gave us a great big picture view. What we, as a family, took away from that Lenten practice, is that over and over again, God’s people turned away from God. Yet God was always there. God never gave up, and God is still there for us today. Even when we turn away, or we don’t listen, or we don’t pay attention. God is still there, wanting to be in relationship with us. One of the most important ideas that I tried to instill in my children when they were growing up is that our mistakes do not define us – what we do about those mistakes is what defines us. How do we move forward? Do we ask forgiveness? Do we try to right our wrongs? Do we turn back? Because God is always there, welcoming our return. Back in January we had a reading from Isaiah, “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. God does not faint or grow weary;” I love the image that God does not grow weary, that no matter how many times we turn away, God is waiting for us to turn back. For today's readings click HERE.During this long season of Lent, through its gift of raw self-discovery, let us always remember to keep singing -- for our God is a God of Love. This video was recorded this February (not 2020) and features 9th and 10th grade students at White Bear Lake Area High School, some of whom are young Episcopalians belonging to St. John in the Wilderness parish.
Lyrics: My life flows on in endless song; Above earth's lamentation, I hear the sweet, though far-off hymn That hails a new creation Through all the tumult and the strife, I hear that music ringing It finds an echo in my soul How can I keep from singing? What though my joys and comforts die? I know my Savior liveth What though the darkness gather round? Songs in the night he giveth No storm can shake my inmost calm While to that refuge clinging Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth How can I keep from singing? I lift my eyes, the cloud grows thin I see the blue above it And day by day this pathway smooths, Since first I learned to love it, The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart A fountain ever springing For all things are mine since I am his How can I keep from singing? No storm can shake my inmost calm While to that refuge clinging Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth How can I keep from singing? |
community
Lent 2021 Archives
April 2021
Categories |
RSS Feed